A movement alert is an automatic notification raised when an asset’s detected movement breaks a rule: it left an area it should stay in, entered one it should not, or went out with no record that anyone issued it. The best-known kind is the zone-exit alert, but the idea is broader.
Movement history tells you what happened. Movement alerts tell you while it is happening, when someone can still do something about it.
How a movement alert works
- A detection event happens: a fixed RFID reader reads a tag with a direction, a GPS tracker reports a position, or a phone scan records a GPS fix.
- The event is resolved to an asset from its tag ID.
- Rules are evaluated. Does the event match a condition, such as "left zone", within the rule’s scope?
- Context is checked, for example whether the asset has an active check-out.
- An alert is raised with the evidence: asset, reader or position, zone and time.
- It is delivered to the people who can act, then acknowledged and resolved, with the outcome recorded.
Types of movement alert rule
| Rule | Fires when | Detected by | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| Left zone | An asset is read leaving a zone | Fixed RFID reader, direction out | Pallet scale leaves dispatch |
| Entered zone | An asset is read entering a zone | Fixed RFID reader, direction in | Equipment enters a restricted lab |
| Exit without check-out | An asset leaves with no active loan | Reader plus check-out records | Drill carried past the depot gate unissued |
| Unregistered tag | A tag is read that matches no asset | Reader | A contractor’s tagged pallet at the gate |
| Outside site geofence | An asset is scanned or reported outside its site’s boundary | Phone GPS or a GPS tracker | A tool scanned at the wrong jobsite |
| After hours | A movement happens outside working hours | Any of the above, plus a time window | A forklift moving at 02:00 |
RFID movement alerts
An RFID movement alert comes from a fixed reader or RFID portal at a doorway. The asset carries a passive UHF tag with no battery; antennas on either side of the door tell the reader whether it is going in or out. Because detection happens at choke points, the alert says which boundary the asset crossed, not exactly where it is. Reliability depends on covering every exit, tuning read power and placing tags where bodies or metal will not shield them. Signed, authenticated reader events matter too, so nobody can inject or hide reads.
Alert channels
- In-app inbox: a shared list where alerts are acknowledged and resolved.
- Email: to a named person or team mailbox.
- [Webhook](/glossary/webhook): a signed HTTP request into a service desk, security system or chat tool.
- SMS or push notifications, in some systems.
Avoiding alert fatigue
If every read raises an alert, people stop reading them within a week. Good rules alert on exceptions only.
- Scope rules tightly: to a zone, a category or a single high-value asset, not everything.
- Record check-outs, so kit that leaves on purpose stays quiet.
- Tune portals so tags stored near a door do not trigger.
- Route alerts to an owner who can act, not a shared inbox nobody reads.
- Pause noisy rules while you fix the cause, then switch them back on.
- Review rules monthly: which fired, and how many were false?
Examples by industry
- Hospital: infusion pumps leaving their assigned ward.
- Construction: power tools passing the depot gate without a check-out.
- IT team: laptops leaving the IT store unissued, pushed to the service desk.
- Logistics: equipment read at a dock door heading onto the wrong trailer.
Common mistakes
- Alerts with no owner, so nobody responds.
- Uncovered exits, which give false confidence.
Spreadsheet vs software
A spreadsheet cannot raise a movement alert: it only changes when someone edits it. Conditional formatting can highlight overdue due dates, but that is a reminder about time, not a detected movement. Real movement alerts need detection hardware, such as readers or GPS, and software that evaluates rules as events arrive.
Movement alerts in Asetavo
On the Business plan, Asetavo alert rules cover left zone, entered zone, unregistered tag and exit without check-out, each scoped to everything, a zone, a property, a location, a category or one asset. Alerts are derived on the server from signed, replay-protected reader events, at most one per rule per event, and go to the in-app inbox and, if the rule says so, email or a signed webhook. Each moves from open to acknowledged to resolved, with who and when, and rules can be paused. Business also alerts when an asset is scanned outside its site’s geofence, and GPS trackers raise exit alerts. After-hours rules are not offered; overdue check-out push alerts are coming soon.
