What is a washable garment RFID tag?
Why ordinary RFID tags fail on clothing
The RFID tags used on warehouse pallets or store hard tags cannot survive a garment's real life cycle. Clothes go through finishing and ironing before they are sold, and dozens of wash cycles afterwards. Moisture, detergent, the mechanical shock of spin cycles and the heat of drying and ironing are the classic failure causes for a standard tag's chip and antenna.
That is why garment RFID has mostly meant removable tags — paper hang tags or security hard tags taken off at checkout. The moment the garment leaves the store, the data stops with it.
The washable-tag approach — the label is the sensor
Korean Friends' washable RFID tag (registered patent KR10-2787573, "washable RFID tag for garment data") flips the approach: instead of attaching a tag to the garment, it is sewn in as part of the garment, like a care label. A compact 13.56MHz sensor is engineered to keep working through washing, water, dust and heat, so the data never stops across the garment's life cycle.
The technology is unified under RFID-X, Korean Friends' garment-IoT technology brand, and is applied in production to the company's own fashion brand +82GALLERY. It was developed inside the company's smart factory in Geumcheon-gu, Seoul — built on 40 years of sewing expertise — so it is proven in real sewing and finishing processes, not just in a lab.
Not one tag but a whole process — the patent portfolio
A washable tag alone is not enough: if it must be attached by hand, it cannot scale. That is why Korean Friends also patented the attachment automation and the production and retail process around it.
| Patent | Title | Role in the process |
|---|---|---|
| KR10-2787573 | Washable RFID tag for garment data | Core — the sew-in washable sensor |
| KR10-2745325 | Automatic RFID tag attachment and garment management system | Automated tag attachment on the line |
| KR10-2693675 | Automated hanger system for garment manufacturing | Sewing process automation |
| KR10-2828191 | RFID-based history-management hanger system | Process and inventory tracking |
| KR10-2568124 | Product display structure and manufacturing method | Connecting the retail display stage |
All five patents are public records at the Korean Intellectual Property Office and can be verified by anyone.
What it makes possible
- Inventory accuracy — counts by reader pass instead of piece-by-piece scanning, cutting stocktake time.
- Logistics and history tracking — item-level tracing from factory to store.
- Authentication — a sensor sewn inside the garment is hard to forge, protecting the brand.
- Production data — when and where each piece was made stays with the garment, grounding quality control.
Frequently asked questions
How is it different from a normal care label?
It looks like a sewn-in label, but it carries a 13.56MHz RFID sensor. Beyond displaying care instructions, it records and answers with the garment's own history data.
Which garments can use it?
Any garment that takes a sewn-in label. It is applied today in our own +82GALLERY line, and can be introduced the same way to OEM/ODM production and uniforms.
How do I make an inquiry?
Contact kf@koreanfriends.co.kr or +82-70-4452-5942 and we will walk you through application scope and quantity terms.