System and method for detecting opening events of an item

A method comprising:

• initializing an assembly for detecting opening events of an item by disposing a piezoelectric element of the assembly between two mating portions of a closing structure of the item to load the piezoelectric element;
• generating and outputting, by the piezoelectric element, an electric signal in response to unloading the piezoelectric element by unmating the two portions of the closing structure;
• and
• updating an opening indicator stored in the wireless communications tag in response to the generating and outputting of the electric signal by the piezoelectric element.

A system comprising:

• a wireless communications tag, the wireless communications tag being affixed to an item, the wireless communications tag including or being operatively coupled to a piezoelectric element disposed between two mating portions of a closing structure of the item, the wireless communications tag configured to store an opening indicator based on an electrical signal output by the piezoelectric element, the opening indicator indicates whether the two mating portions were unmated or a number of times the two mating portions were unmated;
• and
• a reader configured to interrogate the wireless communications tag,
• wherein in response to interrogation of the wireless communications tag by the reader, the wireless communications tag transmits a value of the opening indicator to the reader.