RFID or radio frequency identification technology is everywhere. IDs of employees, for products that you buy in the store, and even from our pets. It is a simple but ingenious technology that finds application in an increasingly digitalized world. Impressive for technology that has been used since World War II.
Therefore, now is the time to get acquainted with what RFID is, and with the various options for its use today.
RFID Physical Components
The RFID system has two main components. First, you have the RFID tag itself. It contains information about the identifier, usually related to a large external database. Secondly, we have an RFID reader. It is a device that extracts information stored in an RFID tag.
Since this technology uses radio waves to send and receive information, both tags and readers need some kind of antenna to work.
RFID tags consist of an integrated circuit and an antenna. In other words, a microchip that contains electronic components. The integrated circuit is connected to a tiny antenna. These components are common to all RFID tags, but they vary greatly in size, shape, and appearance. Depending on what they are for.
For example, employee ID cards, which are used to open doors, place RFIDs between plastic sheets. When the RFID chip is inserted into living things, it sits inside a biologically neutral glass capsule. I will name only two approaches.
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Data inside RFID chips
RFID tags have very little storage space. Most tags only have enough room for 96 bits. Although 2000 bits are possible.
Note that the extended ASCII character set uses eight bits per character and does not have much space. Given the space available, you can store something like a name or phone number. More often, however, the data stored inside the RFID chip is referenced to a record in an external database.
RFID chips also have memory that varies in terms of readability and writeability. Most RFID chips are probably read-only. Where data cannot be changed out of the box. Since the stored RFID number can be linked to any record in the database, it is a popular and economical way to use large volumes of RFID tags. It also helps that serial numbers are unique and cannot be changed. These tags can be found on pill bottles and other mass-produced products.
There are also write-once cards, also known as field-programmable RFID chips. These chips may have data written to them once, but from that point on, they can only be read. They are useful for small applications. Then you have read-write tags that you can overwrite as needed.
What are active RFID tags versus passive RFID tags?
There are two main options for RFID tags. The one most people encounter is passive. He does not have his own source of energy. Instead, it receives power from an RFID reader through an antenna, which it uses to retrieve its tiny data cache.
Passive RFID tags have many benefits. Since they do not require maintenance or power, they can be permanently embedded in objects. This makes it easy to protect them from harm or hide them.
The downside is that passive tags have a shorter range than active tags. They have an internal power source that allows them to broadcast their signal continuously or at specified intervals. RFID technology uses very little power, so even active devices can operate for a significant amount of time without the need for recharging or a new battery.
RFID Frequencies
RFID tags operate in several different frequency bands:
- Low frequency: 30-500 kHz. These tags have very short ranges, usually just inches.
- High frequency: 3-30 MHz. These tags range from inches to feet.
- Super high frequency: 300-960 MHz. Average range 25 feet.
- Microwave frequency: 2.45 GHz, with a range over 30 feet.
Passive tags are usually low-frequency or high-frequency, while the microwave and microwave tags require active power.
RFID & Smartphone NFC
Many newer, higher-end smartphones have a feature known as “NFC” or near field communication. It is a wireless feature that uses the same protocol (essentially a language) as RFID.
The big difference here is that NFC devices can be used as both RFID readers and can mimic RFID tags. There are all kinds of uses for that, with click-to-pay contactless mobile payments being prime examples. Two NFC devices can also send data to each other as long as they are close enough to touch each other.
NFC is not a universal RFID system. It only operates in the 13.56 MHz high-frequency RFID range, which makes it structurally very small.
RFID Blocking
RFID signals can be blocked using suitable materials. Since passive tags must be quite close to the reader to work, they have found application in bank cards. In many countries, it is now possible to “tap and pay†at card machines. It has also led to a new form of crime where small amounts of money can be stolen by swiping these cards through wallets.
Alternatively, the RFID tag could potentially be copied using a hidden reader. NFC technology in smartphones is one way to do this.
This is why RFID blocking wallets have become popular now. RFID cards can be stored in a special case that prevents the card from being read without the owner’s knowledge.
The Many Uses of RFID
One of the earliest and most useful applications of RFID technology was in tracking livestock. It is now also widely used to track products, components and any other movable items. RFID technology allows product tracking from place of production to point of sale.
RFID, as mentioned above, is used in bank cards, smart cards and various authentication systems. With the development of the Internet of Things (IoT), it is also becoming an important part of the digitalization of physical objects.
Pets and some people are also being given RFID tags. In the case of pets, this is a way to get lost animals back. In humans, they can also be used in medicine, as some RFID systems can also include sensors.
RFID or something like that will almost certainly play an important role in providing real objects and entities of digital identity. As everything becomes more automated, this is the only real way to make sure we know where everything is and what is happening with it.
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