Fadel Adib just recently gave a talk about Using Small Drones to Read RFID Tags Indoors on Wednesday, April 11th, 2018, at the 2018 RFID Journal Live in Orlando. 

Fadel has developed an RFID system that would allow users to capture tag reads with a small drone carrying a virtual antenna array to forward data between tags and a reader. The UHF RFID tag-reading system, known as RFly, keeps the RFID reader on the ground while deploying relays to capture the device's RF signal, forward it to tags and send responses from those tags back to the reader. Learn how the system enables small, lightweight drones to operate in a large environment, such as a distribution center or warehouse, flying over tagged items to capture ID numbers and approximate the tags' locations within about a foot.