RTLS stands for real-time location system. It is a technology used to automatically locate and track objects, people, vehicles, or equipment inside a facility. In a warehouse, RTLS can show where pallets, carts, containers, scanners, forklifts, workers, and work-in-progress are located and how they move through the operation. 

Barcode scanning only captures location when someone scans something. RFID and legacy RTLS are useful for broad visibility, but they often cannot provide the precision needed for detailed warehouse flow, zone validation, or high-confidence search. GPS does not work reliably indoors. Only Quantum RTLS provides real-time, 3D indoor location data with millimeter accuracy, creating a much more precise view of how materials really move through the facility. 

Quantum RTLS uses different Mobiles depending on what you need to track. For material tracking, the ultra-compact QTM-DMC10 Mobile can be attached to pallets, carts, containers, bins, or inventory. For workers, higher-update wearable options such as wristbands or badges can be used. For tools, vehicles, scanners, or equipment, other Mobile form factors can be mounted based on the use case, required update rate, and environment. 

Not always. Some use cases require a Mobile on every pallet, cart, container, or asset for continuous tracking. Other workflows can use scanner-based location capture, where the system records the location of a tracked barcode scanner at the moment an item is scanned.  

Many deployments combine direct asset tracking, scanner tracking, forklift tracking, worker tracking, and zone events to create the right level of visibility without over-instrumenting the operation. 

A Quantum RTLS system has four core components: 

• Anchors: Fixed devices installed wherever positioning is required. Anchors detect ultrasonic signals from Mobiles and can be daisy-chained using Power over Ethernet for flexible deployment. 

• Mobiles: Tracking devices attached to pallets, carts, scanners, forklifts, workers, tools, or equipment. Mobiles emit ultrasonic signals that are detected by Anchors to calculate precise 3D position. 

• Gateways: Network devices that coordinate communication between the positioning hardware and the software platform. 

• Edge Compute Device (ECD): The local compute unit that runs the positioning network, hosts the Spatial Intelligence Platform and API, and makes location data available on-premise or optionally through cloud-connected systems. 
  
  

Together, Anchors, Mobiles, Gateways, and the Edge Compute Device (ECD) create a live spatial data layer for warehouse operations. 

Yes. Quantum RTLS can run inside your facility or private infrastructure. The Edge Compute Device (ECD) hosts the platform and API locally, allowing your team to access warehouse location data on-premise. Cloud connectivity is optionally supported depending on your IT and data requirements. 

A typical warehouse rollout starts with a pilot area, then expands to a larger zone, building, or material flow process once coverage, tracking methods, and ROI are validated. Full deployment timelines depend on facility size, number of buildings, network readiness, tracked asset volume, and whether the project includes integrations with WMS, MES, ERP, or logistics planning systems. 

Yes. ZeroKey provides open APIs and event streams that can feed location, movement, zone, scan, and workflow data into existing warehouse and business systems. This allows teams to update item location, trigger workflows, generate movement history, support planning, or stream clean data into BI and analytics platforms.