An Overview of RF Tags

RF Tags are used to -

• Identify fish, livestock, pets, and products.
• Provide inventory control and theft prevention.
• Automation production systems.
• Allow access to buildings and parking areas.
• Collect tolls and automate traffic.
• Access vehicles and provide theft prevention.
• One of the newest uses is in Smart Cards.
• Auto fueling
• Smart lables
• Airline baggage tracking
• Electronic product code (EPC)

RF Tags generally fall into three broad categories -

• Inductive RF Tags
• Back Scatter
• Two-Way

Inductive RF Tags

Typical Applications for Inductive Tags are -

• Electronic Article Surveillance (EAS)
• Antitheft systems
• Access control systems
• Personal identifications systems
• Wild life management
• Pet identification
• Product identification
• Vehicle Access & Security

Back Scatter

Passive back scatter tags convert a portion of the RF energy from the Tag reader/Interrogator to power the the transponder. The tag generates a data stream comprised of a clock signal and the data stored in the tag.

Back scatter tags are capable of being programmed with varying amounts of information.  Some tags may be reprogrammed by a reader, others have the ability to store additional data from readers to their internal memory.

Typical Applications for Back scatter Tags are -

• Toll Collection
• Traffic Management Systems
• Inter modal Container Management
• Asset Tracking
• Rail  Car Identification
• Rail Control Systems

Two-way

Typical Applications for Two-way Tags are -

• Toll Collection
• Traffic Management Systems
• Inter modal Container Management
• Mfg. Process Control
• Waste Management
• High Value Asset Control

What are the Issues ?

Radio Frequencies Used -

• 78,000 Hz to 5,600,000,000 Hz.
• Affects range, reliability, and cost.
• US and International Regulations.

Lack of Standards -

Microchipping of companion animals in the US is an example of one of the industry failures due to the lack of an industry standard.  See Microchipping Your Pet for more information.
• Many proprietary protocols.
• Few international standards.

Cost -

• RFID Tag costs vary greatly, from less than $1 to $190 or more each.
• Interrogators cost between $1,000 to $12,000 ea.

Integration -

• Data collected must be combined with existing data to be useful.

No one technology works for all applications -

• Higher frequency tags can support higher read/write rates.
• Low frequency tags are more prevalent and less costly.
• Read only or license plate tags may be sufficient for identifying an object or customer but may not provide the capability to provide the status of a product or customer without numerous transactions with an information database.
• Transaction costs to an information database may be high enough to justify a more expensive RF tag capable of storing the new or changed status of the object tagged with out requiring a real time transaction with the information system.

RFID Tag capabilities vary greatly -

• RFID tags can be read only, write once/read many (WORM), and read/write capable.
• The number of unique IDs, amount of read only memory, and the amount of write capable memory varies greatly.
• The ability to read and/or write to multiple RFID tags also varies between suppliers.

Infrastructure cost is a major concern -

• Each reader or interrogator needs to read an average of 50 RF tags to be cost effective.
• Duplicate infrastructures for several RFID applications are cost prohibitive.

Is the technology viable ? -

• Read accuracy, reliability, compatibility with existing RF systems, and computability with local, national, and international regulations are all issues which must be examined carefully.

The Future of RFID

Technology -

• Rapid advancements probable.
• Smaller less expensive silicon

Diversity of Products -

• New uses are being found daily.
• Consumer products
• Brand loyalty

Consolidation of Suppliers -

• Larger companies are acquiring the smaller ones.

Integration with other Products -

• Automotive Industry.
• Paper container Industry
• Printers

Reduced Cost -

• Wider use of the technology.
• Increased production quantities.

AIM - Home for information on RFID technologies.