Frequently Asked Questions

RTLS in Healthcare Technology

What are the different types of RTLS technologies and what are their pros and cons?

There are several types of technologies used for RTLS in hospitals. The most prominently used technologies are Infrared (IR), Ultrasound and Radio Frequency (RF)-based solutions. To meet the needs of the new applications for RTLS in healthcare, vendors must be able to prove room-, bed- and bay-level accuracy. The underlying RTLS technology must also provide ease of deployment and non-interference with mission-critical Wi-Fi systems.

• Infrared and Ultrasound have tackled the proven accuracy and non-interference issues, but Ultrasound can be very expensive and disruptive to install on an enterprise basis.

• Wi-Fi and ZigBee-based systems can be less disruptive to install, but they use RF for locating, which cannot guarantee room and bay-level accuracy. These solutions can only provide “estimated” locations.

• Today, Infrared is the leading RTLS technology in healthcare both for its locating accuracy and its easy-to-install, battery-powered solutions.

For more information or to request an RTLS Needs Assessment for your hospital, contact TeleTracking »