Abstract

 

RFID is not a new concept. RFID tags consist of silicon chips and an antenna that can transmit data to a wireless receiver. With the field of wireless reading device, hundreds of tags can be read in a second. RFID tags are classified into active and passive tags. Former are costly ranging from Rs. 65/- per tag and the latter are cheap in the range of Rs. 25-30 per tag. Passive tags cannot give complete data rather brief. RFID has pervasive applications and in this paper the author discussed the potential applications of the technology in different fields of business and also suggests certain approaches to tap the maximum potential.

 

CONTENTS

 

1. Concept of RFID and its origins

2. How RFID works and classification.

3. How different RFID is from Barcode

4. Current applications and potential uses of RFID

5. Factors and Adverse affects for the Adoption of RFID technology.

6. Strategies for the rapid adoption of RFID.

7. Conclusion

 

Introduction: Concept of RFID and its origin

 

Radio frequency Identification (RFID has been around since World War II). The technology used in RFID has actually been around since the early 1920s. A much more related technology, the IFF transponder, went into operation in 1939 and was routinely used by the British in the World War II to identify airplanes as friend and foe. RFID became reality after 3 years of advances in many different fields. In simple, RFID tags consist of silicon chips and an antenna that can transmit data to a wireless receiver. Therefore the radio Id tags do not receive line-of-sight for reading that is the RFID tagged product need not be held close to the scanner to read the data of a RFID tag. Within the field of a wireless reading device, it is possible to automatically read hundred of tags a second.

 

How RFID works and the classification

 

The technology in RFID is a system and consists of different components such as, tags, tags readers, tag programming stations, circulation readers, sorting equipment, and tag inventory wand. The purpose of a RFID system is to enable data to be transmitted by a portable device called a tag, which is read by an RFID reader and processed according to the needs of a particular application. The data transmitted by the tag may provide identification or location information or specifics about the product such a price, color, date of purchase, etc. The use of RFID in tracking and access applications first appeared during 1980s. RFID quickly gained attention because of its ability to track moving objects. As the technology is refined, more pervasive and invasive uses of RFID tags are in the works.

 

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. The interrogator, an antenna packaged with a transceiver and decoder, emits a signal activating the RFID tag so it can emit a signal activating the RFID tag so it can read and write data to it. When RFID tag passes through the electromagnetic zone, it detects the readers activation signal. The reader decodes the data encoded in the tags integrated circuit (silicon chip) and the data is passed to the host computer for processing.

 

RFID tags can be classified into passive or active tags. Passive tags do not have their own power supply. The minute electrical current is induced in the antennas by the incoming radio frequency scan provides enough power for the tag to send a response. Due to power and cost concerns. The response of a passive RFID tag is brief typically just an ID number. Lack of an on-board power supplies means that the device can be quite small: commercially available products exist that can be embedded under the skin. As of 2005, the smallest such devices commercially available measured 0.4mm x 0.4mm, which is thinner than a sheet of paper; such devices are practically invisible. Passive tags have practical read ranges that vary from about 10mm up to about 6 meters. Active RFID tags, on the other hand, must have a power source and may have longer ranges and larger memories than passive tags as well as the ability to store additional information sent by the transceiver. At present, the smallest active tags are about the size of a coin. Many active tags have practical ranges of tens of meters and a battery life of up to several years.