Ford Motor Co.'s most important vehicle, the Ford F-150, is going high-tech. The manufacturer plans to offer radio frequency identification technology for tracking work tools in its 2009 F-150 trucks.
F-150 drivers who use their trucks for jobs will be able to affix RFID tags to tools and construction equipment that can be read and recognized by RFID antennas installed within the vehicle. Using an on-dash, touch-screen computer that displays information about what equipment is in the truck, drivers can ensure that they leave for job sites with the correct tools and depart from sites without having left any tools behind. Drivers can program lists of equipment needed for specific types of jobs into the computer, which can also be accessed by a keyboard and mouse, and then check equipment on board against those lists. Ford partnered with RFID company ThingMagic and industrial power-tool company DeWalt to develop the new option.
Source: Information Week, http://www.informationweek.com