RFID _Radio Frequency ID_

							RFID (Radio Frequency ID)
                 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.
Information transmitted by a tag
• Identification
• Location
• Other attributes of a product, e.g., price,
  color, date of purchase, etc.
              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.
          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.
                   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.
        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.
     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.
  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.
  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.
              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.