ISO/IEC 15961-4:2016

DRAFT INTERNATIONAL STANDARD ISO/IEC DIS 15961-4
ISO/IEC JTC 1 Secretariat: ANSI

Voting begins on Voting terminates on
2013-07-01 2013-10-01
INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATION FOR STANDARDIZATION • МЕЖДУНАРОДНАЯ ОРГАНИЗАЦИЯ ПО СТАНДАРТИЗАЦИИ • ORGANISATION INTERNATIONALE DE NORMALISATION
INTERNATIONAL ELECTROTECHNICAL COMMISSION • МЕЖДУНАРОДНАЯ ЭЛЕКТРОТЕХНИЧЕСКАЯ КОММИСИЯ • COMMISSION ÉLECTROTECHNIQUE INTERNATIONALE


Information technology — Radio frequency identification (RFID)
for item management: Data protocol —
Part 4:
Application interface commands for battery assist and sensor
functionality
Techniques automatiques d'identification et de capture des données —
Partie 4:
[Revision of first edition (ISO/IEC 15961:2004)]
ICS 35.040



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REFERRED TO AS AN INTERNATIONAL STANDARD UNTIL PUBLISHED AS SUCH.
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International Organization for Standardization, 2013
©
International Electrotechnical Commission, 2013

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ISO/IEC DIS 15961-4

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©  ISO/IEC 2013
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ISO/IEC CD 15961-4
Contents Page
Foreword . iv
Introduction . v
1 Scope . 1
2 Normative references . 1
3 Terms, definitions, and abbreviated terms . 2
4 Conformance . 2
4.1 General . 2
4.2 Conformance of the Sensor Processor . 2
4.3 Application conformance . 3
5 Logical interface model . 3
5.1 General . 3
5.2 Application commands . 3
5.3 The sensor information model for full function sensors . 4
5.4 The sensor information model for simple sensors . 5
6 Simple sensor commands . 5
6.1 Current air interface reference . 5
6.2 Memory mapped simple sensors . 6
6.3 Ported simple sensors . 6
6.3.1 Write-Sample-And-Configuration-Record . 6
6.3.2 Read-Simple-Sensor-Data-Block . 8
6.3.3 Other simple sensor commands . 10
7 Full function sensors . 11
7.1 General . 11
7.2 Write-Sample-And-Configuration . 11
7.2.1 Write-Sample-And-Configuration command . 11
7.2.2 Write-Sample-And-Configuration response . 15
7.3 Read-Alarm-Status . 15
7.3.1 Read-Alarm-Status command . 15
7.3.2 Read-Alarm-Status response . 16
7.4 Read-Event-Record-Segments . 17
7.4.1 Read-Event-Record-Segments command . 17
7.4.2 Read-Event-Record-Segments response . 19
7.5 Other full function sensor commands . 23

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ISO/IEC CD 15961-4
Foreword
ISO (the International Organization for Standardization) is a worldwide federation of national standards bodies
(ISO member bodies). The work of preparing International Standards is normally carried out through ISO
technical committees. Each member body interested in a subject for which a technical committee has been
established has the right to be represented on that committee. International organizations, governmental and
non-governmental, in liaison with ISO, also take part in the work. ISO collaborates closely with the
International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) on all matters of electrotechnical standardization.
International Standards are drafted in accordance with the rules given in the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 2.
The main task of technical committees is to prepare International Standards. Draft International Standards
adopted by the technical committees are circulated to the member bodies for voting. Publication as an
International Standard requires approval by at least 75 % of the member bodies casting a vote.
Attention is drawn to the possibility that some of the elements of this document may be the subject of patent
rights. ISO shall not be held responsible for identifying any or all such patent rights.
ISO/IEC 15961-4 was prepared by Technical Committee ISO/TC JTC1, Information technology,
Subcommittee SC 31, Automatic identification and data capture techniques.
This second/third/. edition cancels and replaces the first/second/. edition (), [clause(s) / subclause(s) /
table(s) / figure(s) / annex(es)] of which [has / have] been technically revised.
ISO/IEC 15961 consists of the following parts, under the general title Information technology — Radio
frequency identification (RFID) for item management:
 Part 1: Application interface
 Part 2: Registration of RFID data constructs
 Part 3 Data constructs
 Part 4: Application interface commands for battery assist and sensor functionality



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ISO/IEC CD 15961-4
Introduction
The technology of radio frequency identification (RFID) is based on non-contact electronic communication
across an air interface. The structure of the bits stored in the memory of the RFID tag is invisible and
accessible between the RFID tag and the interrogator only by the use of the appropriate air interface protocol,
as specified in the corresponding part of ISO/IEC 18000. Since the initial publication of ISO/IEC 18000, it has
become possible to add sensors to the RFID tag using various physical methods, but always using the air
interface protocol as a consistent means of communicating between the RFID tag and the interrogator.
For sensor information, functional commands from the application and responses from the interrogator are
processed in a standard way. This allows equipment to be interoperable. In the special case of the sensor
attached to or integrated within an RFID tag, enables configuration parameters to be encoded in one system's
implementation with the resultant sensory information to be read at a later time in a completely different and
unknown system’s implementation. The data bits stored on each RFID tag and sensor must be formatted in
such a way as to be reliably read at the point of use if the sensor is to fulfil its basic objective. The integrity of
this is achieved through the use of an application protocol, for example as supported by the functional
commands specified in this part of this International Standard and as specified in ISO/IEC 24791.
Manufacturers of radio frequency identification equipment (interrogators, RFID tags, etc.), manufacturers of
sensors, and users of RFID technology supporting sensors each require a publicly available application
protocol. This International Standard specifies the sensor encoding and processing rules, which are
independent of any of the air interface standards defined in the various parts of ISO/IEC 18000. As such, the
sensor encoding and processing rules are consistent components in the RFID system that may, independently,
evolve to support additional air interface protocols and different types of sensors.
The international standards that comprise the data protocol are:
 ISO/IEC 15961-1 defines the transfer of data to and from the application, supported by appropriate
application commands and responses.
 ISO/IEC 15961-2 defines the registration procedure of data constructs to ensure that as new applications
adopt the data protocol that it becomes a relatively straightforward process to support that application.
This can be achieved by the Registration Authority publishing regular updates of the RFID data constructs
that have been assigned, and for a means of incorporating these updates into the processes of ISO/IEC
15961-1.
 ISO/IEC 15961-3 defines the data constructs and the rules that govern their use.
 ISO/IEC 15961-4 defines the transfer of sensor data to and from the application, supported by
appropriate application commands and responses.
 ISO/IEC 15962 specifies the overall process and the methodologies developed to format the application
data into a structure to store on the RFID tag.
 ISO/IEC 24753 specifies the overall process and methodologies developed to format and process
sensory information in a standardised manner and provide an interface with the appropriate air interface
protocol.



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COMMITTEE DRAFT ISO/IEC CD 15961-4

Information technology — Radio frequency identification (RFID)
for item management — Part 4: Application interface
commands for battery assist and sensor functionality
1 Scope
This part of ISO/IEC 15961 provides a set of application commands and their associated responses for the
following functions:
 To start and stop battery assistance
 To select and de-select a particular sensory function supported by the RFID tag
 To set sensor parameters both initially and ongoing
 To start and stop the sensor monitoring the environment
 To access sensor data
 To establish the battery status
ISO/IEC 24753 defines the encoding rules for identifying sensors, their functions, their delivered
measurements, and the processing rules for sensor data. As such, it receives commands as defined in this
International Standard and provides the information that is required for the appropriate responses.
2 Normative references
The following referenced documents are indispensable for the application of this document. For dated
references, only the edition cited applies. For undated references, the latest edition of the referenced
document (including any amendments) applies.
ISO/IEC 18000-63, Information technology -- Radio frequency identification for item management -- Part 63:
Parameters for air interface communications at 860 MHz to 960 MHz Type C
ISO/IEC 18000-64, Information technology -- Radio frequency identification for item management -- Part 64:
Parameters for air interface communications at 860 MHz to 960 MHz Type D
ISO/IEC 19762-1, Information technology — Automatic identification and data capture (AIDC) techniques —
Harmonized vocabulary — Part 1: General terms relating to AIDC
ISO/IEC 19762-3, Information technology — Automatic identification and data capture (AIDC) techniques —
Harmonized vocabulary — Part 3: Radio frequency identification (RFID)
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ISO/IEC CD 15961-4
1)
ISO/IEC/IEEE 21451-7 , Information technology — Smart transducer interface for sensors and actuators —
Part 7: Transducers to radio frequency identification (RFID) systems communication protocols and transducer
electronic data sheet (TEDS) formats
ISO/IEC 24753, Information technology — Radio frequency identification (RFID) for item management —
Application protocol: encoding and processing rules for sensors and batteries
3 Terms, definitions, and abbreviated terms
For the purposes of this document, the terms, definitions, and abbreviations given in ISO/IEC 19762,
ISO/IEC/IEEE 21451-7, ISO/IEC 24753 and the following apply.
3.1
sensor processor
implementation of the processes specified in ISO/IEC 24753 to convert between data and information relevant
to the application layer and the bit based encoding on the sensor memory
4 Conformance
4.1 General
The commands and responses in this part of ISO/IEC 15961 are only expressed in an abstract syntax. Their
structure is determined by the records and fields on the particular sensor. As such, conformance to this part
of ISO/IEC 15961 for a particular sensor system is specifically indicated by the resultant proper encoding
according to ISO/IEC 24753 and then passed through RFID air interface protocols to the sensor.
The arguments and fields contained in individual commands and responses identify what needs to be taken
into account for correct input to the ISO/IEC 24753 Sensor Processor to achieve a valid encoding. Also, they
identify what an application expects to have returned following access to a sensor on an RFID tag. Because
of the way the protocol is structured, the commands and responses specified in this part of ISO/IEC 15961 are,
to a large extent, independent of particular RFID tag types that support sensors. The effect of this is that
ISO/IEC 24753 can specify conformance requirements for valid encoding, which this part of ISO/IEC 15961
cannot.
All the commands and arguments, and their associated processes, are specified in detail in ISO/IEC 24753.
Object Identifiers are used throughout that standard to uniquely identify arguments within commands and
responses for each type of sensor. Object Identifiers are also used to identify fields with particular sensor
records.
4.2 Conformance of the Sensor Processor
The Sensor Processor is, effectively, the implementation of ISO/IEC 24753. An implementation of ISO/IEC
24753 is required to support one or both of the following:
a) All the processes that are required to support all aspects of full function sensors for configuration and
interpretation of sensor data.
b) All the processes that are required to support all aspects of simple sensors for configuration and
interpretation of sensor data.

1) As IEEE 1451.7 was published in June 2010, and is the reference used in ISO/IEC 24753, this is the reference used
in the body of the text in this part of ISO/IEC 15961
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ISO/IEC CD 15961-4
4.3 Application conformance
An application is expected to support the commands and responses that are defined in ISO/IEC 24753 for full
function sensors and/or simple sensors. Therefore this part of ISO/IEC 15961 shall support either one or both
options (a) and (b) (see 4.2) as determined by the implementation of ISO/IEC 24753 with which it interfaces.
In addition, the application conformance requirements defined by the commands and responses in this part of
ISO/IEC 15961 may be simplified to address a specific type of simple or full function sensor, even to the
extent of only the records and commands required for that sensor. For the commands that are supported, all
the arguments in the command and response shall be supported to achieve the interface with the sensor
processor.
5 Logical interface model
5.1 General
The processes defined in this part of ISO/IEC 15961 are implemented between the application and the air
interface protocol. This part of ISO/IEC 15961 performs similar functions for sensory data as ISO/IEC 15961-
1 does for item-related data. The relationship and basic functions of the standards are illustrated in Figure 1.
BUSINESS INTELLIGENCE
Application Commands & Responses
15962 Processes 24753 Processes
15962 Tag Driver 24753 Sensor Driver
18000-n Air Interface Protocol
Sensor

Figure 1 — Basic application interface model
ISO/IEC 24753 is essential reading in implementing this part of ISO/IEC 15961. Reference needs to be made
to that standard for a full description of the component parts of the model relevant to sensors and batteries. An
overview relevant to this part of ISO/IEC 15961 is provided below.
5.2 Application commands
A set of functional application commands is required to enable the application to identify what sensor functions
are supported, to access data from sensors, to access the status of the battery power, and to reset values
such as alarm values for the sensor activity. These are defined in Clause 6 for simple sensors and Clause 7
for full function sensors.
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ISO/IEC CD 15961-4
The structure of the application commands and response can be determined by clauses in ISO/IEC 24753
that use the same name. The structure of these commands may be derived from the set of object identifiers
applicable for each command and response as specified in ISO/IEC 24753. Because of this, only selected
application interface commands are fully described in this part of ISO/IEC 15961.
5.3 The sensor information model for full function sensors
The sensor information model for full function sensors (Figure 2) shows the relationship between component
processes and structures described later in ISO/IEC 24753 for full function sensors specified in IEEE 1451.7.
A physical sensor is defined as one that monitors a particular environmental feature capable of being
expressed in terms of an SI unit or derived SI unit. A given physical sensor may support a number of logical
sensors, each of which specifies a method of event data output, e.g. maximum value, observed value below a
threshold qualified by a timestamp, count of events observed that are above a threshold.



USER APPLICATION
Application Commands
& Responses
ISO/IEC 24753 Sensor Processing
ISO/IEC 24753 Tag Driver
ISO/IEC 18000
Commands & Responses
ISO/IEC 18000 Sensor Processing
Event
Sensor Sample &
Event
Sensor
Admin
Characteristics Configure
Record
Identifier
Record Record Record
Physical Sensor 1
Physical Sensor 2
Physical Sensor n
RFID TAG & SENSOR

Figure 2 — Sensor information model for full function sensors
Figure 2 clearly illustrates that the commands and responses defined in this part of ISO/IEC 15961 need to be
able to communicate with the Sensor Processor, which is the implementation of ISO/IEC 24753. In turn, the
specific arguments within the commands and responses need to comply with the requirements of the five
sensor records:
 Record 1: Sensor identifier
 Record 2: Sensor characteristics record
 Record 3: Sample and configuration record
 Record 4: Event admin record
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ISO/IEC CD 15961-4
 Record 5: Event record
The commands are described in Clause 6.
5.4 The sensor information model for simple sensors
A simple sensor provides limited functional support to determine whether the temperature or other
environmental conditions have gone outside some allowable limits. These sensors are defined as factory
programmed, which restricts parameter setting from a fully open systems application, but allows data to be
captured using open system air interface commands and processes.
The prime operating mode of a simple sensor is to provide the simple sensor data block using some delivery
mechanism defined by the air protocol interface. The simple sensor data block is a short bit-based code that
provides sensor characteristics, configuration and alarm data. Currently this is 32 bits long, but provision
exists for a maximum length of 48-bits.
There are two formats of simple sensor. The memory mapped simple sensor supports only the simple sensor
data block, which is on the same integrated circuit platform as the data on the RFID tag. The ported simple
sensor supports additional mandatory and optional records, as detailed in the list (below). An annex of
ISO/IEC 18000-63 defines the requirements for processing these records if present on the ported simple
sensor.
NOTE ISO/IEC 18000-64 does not support ported simple sensors.
The sequence of records is as follows:
 Record 1: Simple sensor data block (mandatory for both implementations)
 Record 2: Manufacturer record (mandatory only for the ported simple sensor)
 Record 3: Authorisation password record (optional for the ported simple sensor)
 Record 4: Calibration record (recommended for the ported simple sensor)
 Record 5: Sample and configuration record (mandatory only for the ported simple sensor)
 Record 6: Event record (recommended for the ported simple sensor)
 Record 7: Time synchronisation record (mandatory only for the ported simple sensor and only if the
event record is present)
6 Simple sensor commands
6.1 Current air interface reference
The processing of commands (and responses) for simple sensors is specified in ISO/IEC 24753, which uses
Object Identifiers to identify the specific arguments. As such it is possible in this part of ISO/IEC 15961 to
specify the structure of commands and responses in a manner that does not depend on the existence of a
particular type of simple sensor. There can only be 16 different types of simple sensor, and the sensor
manufacturer permanently encodes a 3-bit binary value into a predefined location in the sensor memory to
identify the sensor type. In turn, the type code is included as a specific arc in the Object Identifier.
Simple sensors as specified in ISO/IEC 18000-63 and ISO/IEC 18000-64 are used throughout this part of
ISO/IEC 15961 to described arguments and processes. Later versions of these air interface protocols need to
be checked for type codes not addressed here (see the current list in 6.3.1.1). If the basic design for simple
sensors is maintained in the air interface protocol and in ISO/IEC 24753, then this part of ISO/IEC 15961 can
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ISO/IEC CD 15961-4
persist. However, the introduction of a possible 48-bit simple sensor can only be supported with a revision to
this part of ISO/IEC 15961.
6.2 Memory mapped simple sensors
The encoding for configuring and reading memory mapped simple sensors is specified in the ISO/IEC 18000
series of standards that support such sensors. The current air interface protocols that support the memory
mapped simple sensors achieve this as follows:
 For ISO/IEC 18000-63 (Type C), standard read and write commands are used addressing the
relevant memory bank to transfer the bit string representing the simple sensor data block. The
simple sensor data block can also be transmitted as part of the reply to the ACK command, where it
is appended to the unique item identifier encoded in memory bank 1.
 The simple sensor data block is transmitted as part of the data packet for an ISO/IEC 18000-64
(Type D) tag.
ISO/IEC 24753 defines two commands for memory mapped simple sensors:
Write-Simple-Sensor-Data-Block command
Read-Simple-Sensor-Data-Block command
However no processes are specified to achieve the bit string that needs to be transferred via the air interface
write command, nor any rules to interpret these bits when the simple sensor data block is read from the RFID
tag. The application interface functions required are identical to two commands more fully defined for ported
simple sensors in this part of ISO/IEC 15961. Therefore, the equivalent command and response defined in
this part of ISO/IEC 15961 (see 6.3.1 and 6.3.2) and the associated processes in ISO/IEC 24753 should be
applied to the memory mapped simple sensors. The memory mapped Write-Simple-Sensor-Data-Block
command is directly equivalent to the ported simple sensor Write-Sample-And-Configuration-Record
command (see 6.3.1). The memory mapped Read-Simple-Sensor-Data-Block command is directly
equivalent to the ported simple sensor command of the same name (see 6.3.2).
6.3 Ported simple sensors
6.3.1 Write-Sample-And-Configuration-Record
6.3.1.1 Write-Sample-And-Configuration-Record command
The Write-Sample-And-Configuration-Record command is used to write user-controlled parameters to a
simple sensor, either for the initial mission, or to re-configure on a subsequent mission. The command cannot
be invoked for re-configuration if any of the alarm bits have been set. The command is only concerned with
providing input that will result in the encoding of bits 22 to 4 (where bit 22 is MSB) of the simple sensor data
block.
This command applies to both types of simple sensor: memory mapped and ported simple sensor.
Before this command can be invoked it is necessary to read the simple sensor data block on the tag. This can
be achieved by invoking the Read-Simple-Sensor-Data-Block command (see 6.3.2), and ignoring all but
these three fields, represented by the encoding in bits 31 to 23:
 Sensor type, for which the following type codes apply:
Type 0 for temperature sensors with a span of 14°C.
Type 1 for temperature sensors with a span of 28°C.
Type 2 for relative humidity sensors
Type 3 for impact sensors
Type 4 for tilt sensors

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ISO/IEC CD 15961-4
 Measurement span
 Accuracy
The Password argument is conditional because it only applies to some ported simple sensors. If the
password is not known, then its size can be determined by invoking the Read-Manufacturer's-Record
command where bits 5 and 6 declare the size of the password. The password is a write-once process and is
not readable. Therefore, to process the configuration command when a password is set on the ported simple
sensor, it is essential to match the password both in terms of length and value.
The Sampling-Regime argu
...