French firm invents RFID technology for underground water pipes

A French company is using RFID technology to avoid accidentally cutting water mains and doing routine maintenance on water pipes. RYB said it worked with the French Technology Laboratory of Research CEA-Leti to develop the technology solution.
“By nature, plastic pipes are inert and difficult to detect once they are installed. Only topographical mapping situate them. But urban environment evolves, making difficult to get a fast, accurate and comprehensive vision of the subsoil,” the company said in a press release. “Localization techniques are complex and difficult to perform in the field. Thus, each year thousands of water pipes are accidentally cut, with an important impact on the networks.”
The companies said they developed a new generation of RFID technology that can detect up to 1.5 meters underground and provide accuracy within a few centimeters. The technology also works in a harsh environment, including being submerged under water; offers instant feedback; and stores information about the pipe, including manufacturing date and serial number. Further, the tags have no power supply requirement and can be either integrated directly into the pipe or as a standalone electronic marker.
The solution, called ELIOT, took three years of collaboration and nearly $1.5 million investment to achieve. RYB is a leading provider of Polyethylene piping systems. The company said it is a major European player in the field of water, gas, and electricity transport, as well as telecommunications.