RFID Reader EM-18 working

RFID Reader EM-18

What is RFID?

Radio Frequency Identification, or RFID, is a rapidly-emerging identification and logging technology. Whether or not you have come across RFID systems in your work, you have probably encountered RFID in your daily life, perhaps without even being aware of it. At their simplest, RFID systems use tiny chips, called "tags," to contain and transmit some piece of identifying information to an RFID reader, a device that in turn can interface with computers.

To begin understanding RFID, think of a conventional Point-of-Sale barcode reader scanning grocery barcodes. In its simplest form, an RFID system is much the same: it also can identify a package. However, unlike barcodes, RFID tags don't need a direct line of sight: within limits, we can now scan an unpacked skid of boxes. Next, think of RFID tags as mini databases, or as barcodes that can accumulate information as they travel. At this point, RFID diverges qualitatively from barcoding, giving it great new potential.

Radio-frequency identification (RFID) is a technology that uses communication through the use of radio waves to exchange data between a reader and an electronic tag attached to an object, for the purpose of identification and tracking.

It is possible in the near future, RFID technology will continue to proliferate in our daily lives the way that bar code technology did over the forty years leading up to the turn of the 21st century bringing unobtrusive but remarkable changes when it was new.

RFID makes it possible to give each product in a grocery store its own unique identifying number, to provide assets, people, work in process, medical devices etc. all with individual unique identifiers - like the license plate on a car but for every item in the world. This is a vast improvement over paper and pencil tracking or bar code tracking that has been used since the 1970s. With bar codes, it is only possible to identify the brand and type of package in a grocery store, for instance. Furthermore, passive RFID tags (those without a battery) can be read if passed within close enough proximity to an RFID reader. It is not necessary to "show" the tag to the reader device, as with a bar code. In other words it does not require line of sight to "see" an RFID tag, the tag can be read inside a case, carton, box or other container, and unlike barcodes RFID tags can be read hundreds at a time. Bar codes can only read one at a time.

Some RFID tags can be read from several meters away and beyond the line of sight of the reader. The application of bulk reading enables an almost-parallel reading of tags.

Radio-frequency identification involves the hardware known as interrogators (also known as readers), and tags (also known as labels), as well as RFID software or RFID middleware.

Most RFID tags contain at least two parts: one is an integrated circuit for storing and processing information, modulating and demodulating a radio-frequency (RF) signal, and other specialized functions; the other is an antenna for receiving and transmitting the signal.

RFID can be either passive (using no battery), active (with an on-board battery that always broadcasts or beacons its signal) or battery assisted passive (BAP) which has a small battery on board that is activated when in the presence of an RFID reader. Passive tags in 2011 start at $ .05 each and for special tags meant to be mounted on metal, or withstand gamma sterilization go up to $5. Active tags for tracking containers, medical assets, or monitoring environmental conditions in data centers all start at $50 and can go up over $100 each. BAP tags are in the $3–10 range and also have sensor capability like temperature and humidity.

The term RFID refers to the technology. The tags should properly be called "RFID tags" not "RFIDs".

Fixed RFID and Mobile RFID: Depending on mobility, RFID readers are classified into two different types: fixed RFID and mobile RFID. If the reader reads tags in a stationary position, it is called fixed RFID. These fixed readers are set up specific interrogation zones and create a "bubble" of RF energy that can be tightly controlled if the physics is well engineered. This allows a very definitive reading area for when tags go in and out of the interrogation zone. On the other hand, if the reader is mobile when the reader reads tags, it is called mobile RFID. Mobile readers include hand helds, carts and vehicle mounted RFID readers from manufacturers such as Motorola, Intermec, Impinj, Sirit, etc.

There are a variety of groups defining standards and regulating the use of RFID, including the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC), ASTM International, the DASH7 Alliance and EPCglobal. (Refer to Regulation and standardization below.)There are also several specific industries that have set guidelines including the Financial Services Technology Consortium (FSTC) has set a standard for tracking IT Assets with RFID, the Computer Technology Industry Association CompTIA has set a standard for certifying RFID engineers and the International Airlines Transport Association IATA set tagging guidelines for luggage in airports.

RFID has many applications; for example, it is used in enterprise supply chain management to improve the efficiency of inventory tracking and management. The Healthcare industry has used RFID to create tremendous productivity increases by eliminating "parasitic" roles that don't add value to an organization such as counting, looking for things, or auditing items. Many financial institutions use RFID to track key assets and automate Sarbanes–Oxley Act (SOX) compliance. Also with recent advances in social media RFID is being used to tie the physical world with the virtual world. RFID in Social Media first came to light in 2010 with Facebook's annual conference

How does RFID work?

In an RFID system, RFID tags are "interrogated" by an RFID reader. The tag reader generates a radio frequency "interrogation" signal that communicates with the tags. The reader also has a receiver that captures a reply signal from the tags, and decodes that signal. The reply signal from the tags reflects, both literally figuratively, the tag's data content. The reply signal is created as passive "backscatter" (to use the radio term).

What are typical uses for RFID?

As the RFID marketplace evolves, more and more uses for the technology are being developed. First among them are applications that replicate the uses already in place for barcodes. The cost savings in scanning a grocery cart without the need to unpack each item is compelling. More sophisticated applications use the capability of RFID to receive and store data as well as simply to identify itself. This means that an RFID tag can carry along with it a history of transactions.

In addition, newly-developed tags can incorporate a sensor, making the tag now aware of its environment, after a fashion. The automotive industry is testing the capability of an RFID tag to sense tire pressure while a vehicle is in motion.

RFID has many applications in the security field, as can be imagined. The traditional magnetic-stripe security card used for access control is beginning to be supplanted by RFID tagged cards that can offer a greater degree of security and record-keeping. Toll-gates are another frequent application; vehicles can pass an RFID reader and have a toll deducted, often without slowing down.

RFID tags will replace printed bar codes where a business case can be made. An RFID tag that can write information to itself may be used to create an audit trail or tracking record, particularly for high-value goods. The cost of RFID tags will need to fall substantially before RFID will be a cost-effective means of coding inexpensive consumer goods, such as cereal boxes or candy bars.

How soon will RFID dominate as a means of identification on a broad scale? The answer to this question depends in part on simple computations of cost and benefit, but also on acceptance and "mood," for lack of a better word. Contributing to mood are factors such as the current political desire to enhance anti-terrorism security systems, or Wal-Mart's recent requirement that its top 100 suppliers ship cartons and pallets with RFID tags by January 2005. Wal-Mart's initial goal is to use RFID tags for tracking shipments and efficient warehousing; the longer-term goal in the retail industry is the "smart shelf" that can monitor stock levels on a more granular level. The problem of tracking individual items on store shelves is akin to the Internet problem of running fiber optic cabling the "last mile" from the

Internet backbone to the user: the cost increases exponentially as the deployment deepens. Correspondingly exponential reductions in costs, or exponential increases in savings, must ensue to make the  case sell.