Radio Frequency Identification

So What?

What is RFID

• Type of technology that uses electromagnetic radio frequency to identify objects, animals and humans

• Transponders and Readers

• Replacement of barcodes

Types of RFID tags

Type of Tag

Power source

Range Description

Passive Rely on radio signal that was transmitted to them

10 cm – a few meters

Can only reflect signals back

Semi Passive

Internal battery

10-100 meters

Power source activates chip, does not emit signal

Active Internal battery

Hundreds of meters

Generate powerful responses – reliable and effective

It goes way back…

• WWII – U.S., British, Germans, Japanese using plane radar

• 1970’s Los Alamos Nat’l Laboratory – tracking nuclear material

• 1950’s – electronic article surveillance tags

• 1980’s – use of RFID for bridge tolls

Progress of RFID

• Auto-ID center 1999• Track items through

supply chain• Sarma and Brock create

network to link objects to internet

• 2003-100 companies supporting Auto-ID

• EPC used by retailers to track goods

Wal-Mart meets RFID

• Use RFID to count inventory and detect when they are out of stock

• Only 3 % of suppliers use RFID

• Take small steps – slowly implement system.

• Use RFID to support promotions

U.S. DoD uses RFID

• As of January 1, 2007 all cases and pallets must have RFID tags

• Tacking weapons and supplies shipped overseas

• Only passive tags used when in foreign countries so enemies can’t read the tags

Healthcare wants RFID

• Anti-Counterfeiting – history of medicines available at all times

• RFID on patients to give information about medical history.

• Error prevention – prevents wrong procedure from happening

Other Uses

The Concerns…

• Possibility of being tracked through our belongings

• Knowing where people are at all times.

• Using RFID to find and steal goods

• Information available to anyone with an RFID reader

References

• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RFID• http://www.news.com/2010-1069-980325.html• http://www.rfidjournal.com/article/view/1338/1/129• http://www.idtechex.com/products/en/articles/

00000470.asp• http://www.informationweek.com/news/

showArticle.jhtml?articleID=198700170

• http://www.rfidjournal.com/article/articleview/1080/1/1/