Patent ID: 7195149

Claim:
A hose tracking system, comprising: a hose assembly with an attached RF ID tag embedded therein during manufacture, molded thereon, or permanently attached, the RF ID tag being encoded with an identification; an RF ID tag reader useable by a user to obtain the identification from the RF ID tag on the hose assembly and including a user input for at least one trackable event, and being at least one of connectable to a computer network or compatible for uploading the identification and the user input to a network access device; a network accessible hose database having hose related information, including at least one of manufacturing date, replacement date, batch number, lot number, material specifications, material lot number, certificates of compliance, size specifications, fitting specifications, description, drawings, customer data, batch process description, cleaning operations and customer application associated with the identification for the hose assembly, the network accessible hose database providing access to a user to obtain the hose related information based on the identification, wherein the hose database is configured to receive and store data related to the at least one trackable event and the data related to the at least one trackable event is stored in a hose history database which is used to store data on a series of trackable events; and an automatic notice generation system which interrogates at least one of the hose database and the hose history database regarding an expected replacement life of the hose assembly, and generates an electronic notice to the user prior to an expiration of the hose assembly expected replacement life.