RFID (Radio Frequency ID)

1. RFID (Radio Frequency ID)

2. RFID system • In a typical RFID system, individual objects are equipped with a small, inexpensive tag. • The tag contains a transponder with a digital memory chip that is given a unique electronic product code. • A reader, which has an antenna, a transceiver and decoder, emits a signal. • The RFID tag detects the reader's activation signal and sends its own signal out through its antenna. • The reader receives the signal sent by the tag, decodes the data, and passes them to the host computer. • The application software on the host processes the data.

3. Information transmitted by a tag • Identification • Location • Other attributes of a product, e.g., price, color, date of purchase, etc.

4. Passive RFID • It has no internal power supply. • Its antenna receives the radio frequency signal from a reader, which induces just enough power for the integrated circuit in the tag to power up and transmit a response. • The antenna collects power from the incoming signal and also transmits the outbound signal. • The response of a passive RFID tag includes an ID number. It can also contain other data.

5. Passive RFID (cont.) • The device can be quite small: it can be embedded in a sticker, or under the skin. As of 2006, the smallest such devices (without antennas) measured 0.15 mm × 0.15 mm, and are thinner than a sheet of paper. • The lowest cost EPC (a standard for RFID) RFID tags, which are the standard chosen by Wal-Mart, DOD, Target, Tesco in the UK and Metro AG in Germany, are available today at a price of 5 cents each. • The addition of the antenna creates a tag that varies from the size of a postage stamp to the size of a post card. • Passive tags have practical read distances ranging from about 10 cm (4 in.) up to a few meters depending on the chosen radio frequency and antenna design/size.

6. Active RFID • Active RFID tags have their own internal power source to power ICs that generate the outgoing signal. • Active tags are typically much more reliable (e.g. fewer errors) than passive tags due to the ability for active tags to conduct a "session" with a reader. • Active tags also transmit more powerful signals than passive tags, allowing them to be more effective in water (including humans/cattle bodies, which are mostly water), metal (shipping containers, vehicles). • Many active tags have practical ranges of hundreds of meters, and a battery life of up to 10 years.

7. Applications--passports • RFID tags are being embedded in passports issued by many countries. • The first RFID passports ("e-passports") were issued by Malaysia in 1998. In addition to information also contained on the visual data page of the passport, Malaysian e-passports record the travel history (time, date, and place) of entries and exits from the country. • RFID tags are included in new UK and some new US passports, beginning in 2006. The tags will store the same information that is printed within the passport and will also include a digital picture of the owner. • The passports will incorporate a thin metal lining to make it more difficult for unauthorized readers to "skim" information when the passport is closed.

8. Applications--transportation • The Moscow Metro, the world's busiest, was the first system in Europe to introduce RFID smartcards in 1998. • The UK devised a credit-card-like pass for public transportation system. • Since 2002, in Taipei, Taiwan the transportation system uses RFID operated cards as fare collection. The Easy Card, is charged at local convenience stores and metro stations, and can be used in Metro, buses, parking lots and taxis. • In Hong Kong, mass transit is paid for almost exclusively through the use of an RFID technology, called the Octopus Card. Originally it was launched in September 1997 exclusively for transit fare collection, but has grown to be similar to a cash card, and can be used in vending machines, fast-food restaurants and supermarkets. • The New York City Subway is conducting a trial during 2006, utilizing PayPass by MasterCard as fare payment.

9. Application—product tracking • The Canadian Cattle Identification Agency began using RFID tags as a replacement for barcode tags. The tags are required to identify a bovine's herd of origin. • RFID tags are used in libraries and bookstores. • High-frequency RFID tags are used for pallet tracking, building access control, airline baggage tracking, and apparel and pharmaceutical item tracking. • High-frequency tags are widely used in identification badges, replacing magnetic stripe cards. These badges need only be held within a certain distance of the reader to authenticate the holder. • UHF RFID tags are commonly used commercially in case, pallet, and shipping container tracking, and truck and trailer tracking in shipping yards.

10. Application—Supply Chain Mgmt • Since January, 2005, Wal-Mart has required its top 100 suppliers to apply RFID labels to all shipments improve supply chain management. • The United States Department of Defense has published similar requirements. • To meet this requirement, vendors use RFID printer/encoders to label cases and pallets that require EPC tags for Wal-Mart. These smart labels are produced by embedding RFID inlays inside the label material, and then printing bar code and other visible information on the surface of the label. • Due to the size of these two organizations, their RFID mandates impact thousands of companies worldwide. The deadlines have been extended several times because many vendors face significant difficulties implementing RFID systems. • In practice, the successful read rates currently run only 80%, due to radio wave attenuation caused by the products and packaging.

11. Human Implants • Implantable RFID chips designed for animal tagging are now being used in humans. • An early experiment with RFID implants was conducted by British professor of cybernetics Kevin Warwick, who implanted a chip in his arm in 1998. • Night clubs in Barcelona, Spain and in Rotterdam, The Netherlands, use an implantable chip to identify their VIP customers, who in turn use it to pay for drinks. • In 2004, the Mexican Attorney General's office implanted 18 of its staff members with tags to control access to a secure data room.