User's Manual

Rev. 6/21/2022 Page 3 of 19
System Description
This document describes the Fastenal® FAST Bin℠ system, which enables remote monitoring
of inventory by means of sensing and communication technologies to report the state of the
inventory to a central Fastenal server.
The FAST Bin system consists of the five devices that are used to create two different types
of installations: Infrared (IR) Bins and Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) Bins. The
devices include IR Bins, RFID Bins, Controllers, Readers, and Repeaters.
The IR system uses IR Bins, Controller(s) and Repeater(s) to communicate information, while
the RFID system uses RFID Bins, Controller(s), and a Reader.
Each device uses one or more communication technologies to transfer the information, as
shown below:
FAST Bin Communication
The communication technologies are as follows:
 Ethernet: A standard technology used to connect digital devices on a network
using a wired connection
 Long Range Radio (LoRa): A protocol that provides low power, wide area
communication between remote sensors & gateways connected to a network
 Cellular: A network technology that enables mobile device communication
via cells and transceivers
 Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE): A power-conserving variant of Bluetooth technology,
which provides short-range wireless interconnection of digital devices