Written by Wyles Daniel
In high-stakes environments where explosives, missiles, and firearms are stored or deployed, knowing the exact condition of each asset is truly critical. John K. Stevens, founder and CEO of RuBee (IEEE 1902.1), by Visible Assets, Inc., a pioneer in magnetic sensing technology, explains why precision sensing and condition-based management are game-changers for safety, security, and operational efficiency.
“Tracking explosives or kinetic systems isn’t just about knowing where they are,” Stevens says. “It’s about understanding how they’re being used, their health, and whether they’ve been compromised: physically, environmentally, or through mishandling.”
One of RuBee’s standout innovations is its ability to embed a variety of sensors on individual weapons or assets, allowing for real-time monitoring of usage and damage. For example, attaching a RuBee sensor tag to a firearm can reveal exactly how often it has been fired and whether it has sustained damage, information critical for scheduling maintenance and preventing failure. “An M4 rifle, for example, can be damaged beyond repair in just a couple of minutes if mishandled,” Stevens explains. “Our sensors provide what’s called condition-based management (CBM), tracking an asset’s usage patterns and incidents like drops or shocks that might affect reliability.”
This granular insight transforms traditional asset management from simple inventory tracking into a dynamic system that improves safety and reduces downtime. In armories and warehouses, knowing who checked out a weapon, when, and how it was used adds layers of accountability.
RuBee’s technology also plays a crucial role in missile system management and prognostic health management (PHM). With individual missiles costing close to a million dollars each and failure carrying huge operational and financial consequences, the ability to track a missile’s environmental exposure and physical damage is invaluable.
Stevens highlights how damage to missile solid fuel, such as cracking or delamination caused by overheating on a tarmac or physical shocks, or vibration from being dropped or jolted during transport, can lead to catastrophic failures. “For example, missiles loaded onto aircraft for test sorties have strict limits on the number of flights before they must be discarded or refurbished,” he says. “If a missile experiences shock from, say, a collision at sea, all kinetic devices on the ship may become suspect and require costly inspections.”
By monitoring shocks and environmental stresses with their sensor tags, RuBee can identify compromised missiles early, preventing costly failures and unnecessary replacements. Stevens estimates that RuBee’s technology has already helped reduce missile-related losses.
While military and defense are RuBee’s core markets, Stevens points out that the same technology has valuable industrial uses. In manufacturing, RuBee sensors track the condition and usage of high-value tooling. One long-term customer, a global leader in injection molding, uses RuBee tags on tooling worth millions to monitor use cycles, maintenance needs, and to ensure only authorized operators use the equipment.
Mining is another important sector. RuBee developed a specialized sensor tag for metal teeth on large excavators, components that wear down or fall off, potentially damaging rock crushers and causing costly operational shutdowns. “Knowing the status and location of these teeth can save millions by preventing equipment damage and downtime,” Stevens explains. This product resulted from three years of close collaboration with a major mining equipment company and is now being tested in mining-intensive regions, such as South Africa.
RuBee’s technology origins trace back to the 1980s, where early challenges involved developing wireless communications in grocery stores with steel shelving, an environment hostile to traditional RF signals. “We learned that magnetic fields could penetrate steel and liquids without the multi-path reflections that confuse RF,” says Stevens. This insight laid the foundation for RuBee’s magnetic, packet-based communication technology, which employs custom low-power integrated circuits designed by the company and the IEEE 1902.1 standard.
This magnetic approach enables RuBee tags to deliver accurate location data within a few inches in complex environments, such as armories or warehouses, which conventional RFID struggles with due to signal reflections and interference.
In sensitive environments where safety is paramount, RuBee’s low-power magnetic signals produce virtually no compromising emanations, limiting signal detectability beyond about 15 to 20 feet. This enhances security by reducing the risk of unauthorized tracking or signal interception.
The technology is also intrinsically safe around explosives and fuzed ordnance, a factor that has been validated repeatedly, and is FDA-classified as a Class 1, non-significant risk device, making it safe for use even in operating rooms or near medical implants.
Stevens sees RuBee as uniquely positioned to support both military and industrial asset visibility needs with an unmatched combination of durability, security, and data-rich monitoring.
“Whether it’s a multi-million-dollar missile, a weapon in an armory, or a critical piece of mining equipment, understanding the health and history of that asset is vital,” he says. “Condition-based management using magnetic sensing is not just the future; it’s a necessity for safety, operational efficiency, and accountability.”
