dancing bear Posted December 2, 2015 Report Share Posted December 2, 2015 Has anyone considered adding an identification device/chip to a special quilt? Sewing it into the quilt somewhere ... I'm finishing up a quilt which will go overseas and it occurred to me that maybe I might want to use some sort of tracking device since it's difficult to track packages from the US to a foreign country. I've googled with no success. Just thinking ... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GMALKB Posted December 2, 2015 Report Share Posted December 2, 2015 Great idea if there is such a thing............can't be too careful any more. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oma Posted December 2, 2015 Report Share Posted December 2, 2015 I could see something like this being a good idea for quilts placed in shows. If they get stolen they can be tracked. I don't know why it couldn't be something as small as a microchip they use in animals. Interesting concept. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cagey Posted December 3, 2015 Report Share Posted December 3, 2015 Unless the quilt was in a show or if someone with a chip reader saw it, how would a chip help you find the quilt? Do they make a small enough waterproof crush proof GPS transmitter that would let you know where the quilt is being stored? Cagey Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ffq-lar Posted December 3, 2015 Report Share Posted December 3, 2015 Technology isn't there yet for a tiny enough GPS tracking system, though I'm sure it's coming. Trackers need a battery for a power supply and are generally too large to hide on a quilt, which would be necessary for theft-tracking. Great idea for lots of valuables besides quilts. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
piecrust Posted December 3, 2015 Report Share Posted December 3, 2015 I have heard of quilters placing an RFID chip in the binding. RFDI chips have been around since the 1970's and some are as small as 1/3mm, but those only transmit a few feet with antenna size being the restriction. (Just a thought-a long antenna could be placed in the binding.) Chips have become relatively inexpensive and the tracking software is readily available. Eventually everything in our lives will have an RFID chip, including ourselves. Department stores have placed them in blue jeans and cans of tennis balls for inventory control. Why not imbed one into a quilt? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cagey Posted December 3, 2015 Report Share Posted December 3, 2015 Piecrust: So how does imbedding an RFID chip into your quilt help you find it if it goes missing? Cagey Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
piecrust Posted December 3, 2015 Report Share Posted December 3, 2015 An RFID chip emits a unique radio frequency which can be tracked. RFID chips are being placed into everything-----including our pets. The one I found most amusing was at the driving range. RFID chips are in the range balls. If you hit one over the netting, the driving range will charge you for the ball. Later, you can get a listing of where the balls were landing sent directly to your email/phone. Isn't technology wonderful! We are tracking billions and billions of items daily.Don't forget your car can be tracked. Check out the following: http://electronics.howstuffworks.com/gadgets/high-tech-gadgets/rfid.htm Once I became aware of how prevalent they are, I'm finding them everywhere. (You'd be amazed at what is in packaging today.) Depending on the range you wish to search, would be the limiting factor for a quilt. The greater the range, the larger the chip. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gator Posted December 3, 2015 Report Share Posted December 3, 2015 Sounds like something great to "invent". I bet someone on this forum could come up with something and make a nice profit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mary Beth Posted December 3, 2015 Report Share Posted December 3, 2015 I work for Garmin and I know we do not have the technology to find a lost or stolen device. At one time we had a product called the GTU 10, a much larger unit than you are talking about. But there was another party supplying the "tracking" and they have stopped. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cagey Posted December 3, 2015 Report Share Posted December 3, 2015 Piecrust: Going back to Sylvia's original question about installing a RFID chip into her quilt going oversees, I see it doing little if anything for her to help track or recover her quilt if it is lost or stolen. She would be better off in my opinion, to simply send if via registered mail or with UPS/FedEx signature required. At least then, the shipping company will be tracking the item, and doing their best to deliver it to the proper person. Will England's, Italy's, or any other county's police force scan a quilt for a RFID chip to discover if it is lost or stolen? Animal control amy do this, but I am not if they do this for other items. Until there is a RFID sized transmitter that will report its location to a centralized tracking agency, I think you are better off working your name into your quilting and sending it via a registered mail. Best of luck to you Sylvia. Cagey Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pumpkinpatchquilter Posted December 4, 2015 Report Share Posted December 4, 2015 This topic came up recently on one of my Facebook quilting groups. The consensus was something along the lines of - because you can often feel the chip in the soft fabric of the quilt, that thieves might wise up quickly and remove them. Does that mean they are not worth using? I don't know. Maybe it won't stop theft of famous quilts being stolen from shows...but a lost item in the mail that is very important to you? Something to ponder. I also believe someone IS offering this already or something similar...or was...I'd have to go back and look to see who it was - but I thought I had heard something along the lines that it didn't take off or there wasn't enough demand. Doesn't mean with good marketing it wouldn't sell for someone else though. Ideas are meant to be improved upon, sometimes it takes a motivated person with a fresh perspective. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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