RFID - A Gift From The Past

RFID technology that is being used by companies world over has been around us since 1920s. Many companies are using RFID tags which are embedded in many products to store and retrieve data and information. These tags have tiny antennae that allow them to send a signal to an RFID reader or receiver.

There are primarily two types of RFID tags ? Active Tag and Passive Tag.

Active RFID Tag An active RFID tag has its own power supply and as a result can be used to receive information from a greater distance. Active RFID tags can also store information Batteries of some active RFID tags can last for as long as 10 years.

Passive RFID Tag In contrast, passive RFID tag does not have its own power supply. This type of RFID tag receives its power supply from an electrical current in the antenna that is produced as a result of the incoming radio frequency scan. A passive RFID tag can be used for sending and receiving information and data over a short distance only.

Nowadays RFID tags and readers are omnipresent. You will find RFID technology in bookstores and CD shops. It is used as an anti theft device. If a book or a CD has not been scanned, then it is the RFID technology that starts the alarm. RFID technology is being used in car alarms and car locking systems. Even animal are being tagged with RFID tags to keep a check on their whereabouts. This is specially true for wildlife where scientists keep a record of animals. A future use of RFID technology will be with prisoners. It is envisioned that prisoners could wear RFID tags to keep a watch on their movements and whereabouts.

There is immense use for RFID technology in today?s world and soon more and more companies and industries will start using this technology once the importance is realized.

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2007 Trends in RFID Tags (Radio Frequency Identification Tags)

Most folks have heard of RFID tags or radio-frequency identification tags and some folks are concerned about electronic security and Big Brother syndrome that this new technology might lead too. Many of those incited by the sound and fury over RFID Tags do not want large corporations or to the government to know every single thing they do and everywhere they go or everything that they buy. However, RFID tags will indeed help consumers and the citizenry by lowering costs of all the products and services that are delivered due to creating a more efficient distribution system.

The economies of scale will lower costs and provide people with a higher standard of living and a better quality of life. Indeed, RFID distribution-streamlining strategies for companies like Wal-Mart show big promises. Even the US military is using RFID tags to help streamline its logistics flows and track shipments now. Protecting our ports and cargo containers can be done with active RFID tags. As this technology increases in performance it will serve a much greater market and have applications in nearly every Industry Sector.

When first introduced RFID showed much promise and yet some of the earliest adopters were somewhat under whelmed, yet now due to demand RFID tags are meeting the challenges of company?s needs. In fact today passive RFID tags can be read from further distances and the costs have come down significantly. RFID tags can now be printed on a computer printer and stuck to packages as labels thus getting closer to replacing some Bar Code Technologies.

We as a society should discuss the future of RFID and how this will affect the way we do business and live, without the conspiracy theorists and background noise, which does not understand the value of this technology. Perhaps this article is of interest to propel thought in 2007?

Lance Winslow, a retired entrepreneur, adventurer, modern day philosopher and perpetual tourist.

RFID Solution to Counterfeit Products

RFID, Radio Frequency Identification of products and the Internet makes it possible to insure that any single product can only be sold once. Cryptography is not necessary to insure that a once only sold item is not a counterfeit.

If a product can be tracked from the producer to the end user with a unique identification, and a data base maintained when that product is sold, then it is a simple matter to prevent counterfeiting. The pharmaceutical companies and their customers would benefit greatly by solving the counterfeit problem.

When a product is scanned at the sales counter, that information would be sent to the company data base and recorded as sold. If that identification were ever reported as sold again, it would then be flagged as counterfeit. If an identification were reported as sold that was not produced by that company, it would be flagged as counterfeit. This process could be used through the entire distribution chain to insure that counterfeit product are not introduced at the distribution level. When the same identification shows up in two different locations then it would signal that one of them was counterfeit.

If the retailer scans the product and reports the transaction to the company that produced the product, the buyer could be assured that the product is genuine.

Cryptography is useless because anyone with the right equipment can copy or produce the Data Security Tag. So just being able to read the tag does not insure that it is not a counterfeit. You would have to know if that was in fact produced by whom you think produced it and know that there is not another one out there waiting to be sold or already sold.

This solution is only valid for products that should be sold to the end user once, such as pharmaceuticals. I would hope that if pharmaceutical companies are not already studying this approach, they would do so now so that I can be assured that I will get what I pay for.

I have started writing as a hobby and plan to write about my life, work, hobbies, region and many other things of interest to me and maybe others will enjoy also.

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hubertcrowell.name

Radio Frequency Identification Device - RFID

Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) is the utilization of radio waves to recognize the objects. Unlike barcode, in RFID one can find a product without virtually coming in touch with it. The tracking number is stored in a micro-chip, which is connected to the aerial. The chip is then enables to put on the air any tracking data to the receiver. Finally the information will be converted into a digital format, which is read by the computers.

A usual RFID tag holds a microchip attached to an aerial escalated on a substrate. The data storage capacity of a chip ranges from 64 bits to 2 kilobytes. For e.g., information about a manufactured goods or consignment-date of production, and destination, can be downloaded to a tag.

A reader is necessary to recover the data stored on an RFID tag. A reader is a device, which has one or more aerials that releases radio wave and take delivery of signals reversed from the RFID tag. The reader then forwards the data into digital form to attached computer.

RFID Advantage

Whether you are related to tracking record in a warehouse or keeping a large bunch of apparel assortments, there is a requirement of a completely automated data receiving and evaluation system which will help out to sustain track of precious assets and equipments. RFID technology offers exclusive solutions to hard data tracking of record or equipment- specifically in applications, where optical based systems not succeed and when write/read capabilities are necessary. The technology is constantly developing, with unlocked designs becoming more and more accessible.

Benefits of RFID vs. Barcode

The barcode's optical nature needs labels which can be detected by lasers. The straight line between reader and labels is usually difficult, not practical, or even unfeasible to attain in industrial atmosphere. In a move to achieve proper functionality, a barcode reader requires clean and clear optics, label must be spotless and free of scratch, and the label and reader must be rightly oriented to each other. On the other hand, RFID technology makes tag enabled to read from a larger distance, even in worst environments.

Additionally, the data imprinted on a barcode is set and cannot be distorted. On the other side, RFID tags have electronic memory as same as to the common computer or digital camera to hold data and this can changed or updated dynamically.

RFID presents particular features which are not accessible with any other automatic identification technologies. Albeit, not all RFID systems offer every single feature, following are few common advantages of RFID.

. Enduring identification or read/write ability
. Do not require contact or straight sight line for reading
. Practical resistance from incomprehensible paint, dirt etc.
. Automated functioning
. Broad range of tag alternatives and frequencies
. Reading capability ranges from few inches to several feet
. Tremendously high data reliability

RFID Applications can be used in many trades other than retail, which includes animal recognition, supple production (tracking and control), laundry tracking, asset identification, and many many more.

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RFID: The New Technology

Origin of RFID tags

Leon Theremin is thought to be the first user or inventor of this device as the inevitable part of spy-kit for the Russian Government in 1945. This cannot be a reliable story: the tool invented by Theremin was a passive covert listening device and not an identification tag. The technology applied in RFID has actually been since the early 1920s. The IFF transponder, a much more relevant technology, developed in 1939 and the British utilised it during the Second World War to detect airplanes whether they were friends or foes.

What is RFID?

RFID is an all-encompassing expression for technologies that employ radio waves to recognize people or objects automatically. After storing a serial number or other identification data on the chip connected to an antenna, user can use a reader to receive radio waves from the chip and convert the signal into digital information, which can be passed over to computers and be used of.

This technology finds its maximum usage in payment systems, access control and asset tracking. For instance, the logistics industry often uses it in making out large cargos.

RF technology has a widespread use in many areas of electronics and technology such as television, radio, cellular phones, radar and automatic identification systems. RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) provides Automatic Identification of items by using radio frequency signals. RFID is used in various applications like toll collection (electronic), railway car identification and tracking, intermodal container identification, asset identification and tracking, item management for retail, health care and logistics applications national, access control, animal identification, fuel dispensing loyalty programmes, automobile immobilizing and so on.

Radio Frequency (RF) makes mention of electromagnetic waves with a wavelength that fit to use in radio communication. Categorized by their frequencies, radio waves are indicated in kilohertz, megahertz or gigahertz. Radio frequencies range from very low frequency (VLF), which has a range of 10 to 30 kHz, to extremely high frequency (EHF), which has a range of 30 to 300 GHz.

RFID - An Outline

RFID is the fittest and supple technology for automatic operation due to its resilience. It offers benefits not available in other identification technologies. RFID can function under various environmental situations and offers a high quality of data integrity. Moreover, since the technology is hard to simulate, it gives advanced level of security.

Essentially RFID is not different from bar coding. Bar code uses a reader and coded labels that are attached to an item, whereas RFID employs a reader and special RFID tools that are connected to an item. To transmit information from the label to reader, Bar code makes use of optical signals but RFID uses RF signals for the same.

Radio waves communicate between an item to which an RFID device is attached and an RFID reader. The tool can have information of the item, such as what the item is, what time a device takes to travel through a particular area, even a parameter such as temperature. Practically, RFID tools such as a tag or label can be connected to anything - from a vehicle to a pallet of products.

RFID technology uses frequencies within the range of 50 kHz to 2.5 GHz. An RFID system incorporates following parts:

. An RFID tool that accommodates data about an item.

. An antenna used to transfer the RF signals between the reader and the RFID device.

. An RFID transceiver that generates the RF signals.

. A reader that gets RF transmissions from an RFID tool and forward the data to a host system for processing.

Moreover, an RFID system includes application-specific software.

Types of RFID tags

RFID tags have two types: active or passive.

Passive RFID tags are lacking in power supply of their own whereas Active RFID tags are full with power source and may have extensive ranges and sizable memories than passive tags and they have more space to accommodate extra data sent by transceiver. Today, one can find the smallest active tags in the size of a coin.

Passive RFID tags are more in use because their manufacturing cost is cheaper and they are not dependent on battery. Apart from cost advantages, there is nothing special in Passive Tags and exactness and reliability of Active Tags make the use of Active Tags common today. Classified by their radio frequency, there are four types of tags in use viz. low frequency, high frequency, UHF tags and Microwave tags.

Superiority of RFID to Bar Coding

According to research team, RFID tag has the capacity to store more data including serial number, individual product information and all other information the manufacturers want to insert. Unlike Barcode system, RFID scrutinizes each product individually and does not identify the whole type of product.

RFID technology helps us in spotting any product within a certain distance; we are not required to see the physical existence of product. These plastic-made passive tags are more durable and re-usable.

Usage of RFID Tags

. Low-frequency RFID tags have a widespread use for animal identification, beer keg and automobile key-and-lock, anti-theft systems.

. High-frequency RFID tags are applied in library book or bookstore tracking, pallet tracking, building access control, airline baggage tracking and apparel item tracking. High-frequency tags are extensively used to identify badges and to replace earlier magnetic stripe cards.

. UHF is normally used in pallet and container tracking in commerce and truck and trailer tracking in shipping yards.

. Microwave RFID tags are used in long-range access control for vehicles.

. RFID transceivers can be used in measuring Seismic sensors, making less complicated remote data collection.

. RFID transponders can be embedded into tyres for tyre tracking; RFID chips are useful in cards as electronic cash.

. This system has a new usage as Smart Key; the key fob contains active RFID circuit that identifies the presence of key within 3 feet of sensor. Consequently driver feels free to open the doors and start the engine even if the key remains in driver's purse or pocket. Invented for animal marking, the embeddable RFID chips are used and brooded over for human beings also.

Potential uses

It is visualized that RFID tags would replace UPC or EAN bar codes because the former has many advantages over the barcode system. However, barcodes have their own plus like lower price than RFID and this quality will keep the barcodes roaming in the market.

Present UPC codes are confined to a single code but RFID codes stand on the opposite end, i.e. they are so long that they have unique code. The matchless qualities of RFID tags denote that a product may be separately tracked as it moves from location to location, eventually arriving in the customers' hands. This system helps organizations in fighting against pilfering and other product losses.

RFID in Textile Rental

The primary use of RFID in textile rental has, till the date, centered on automating the garment handling process, including check-in, sorting, and checkout. RFID systems in textile rental can eliminate significant manual labor generating typical ROI under two years. Additionally, RFID systems are extremely accurate and generate significant improvements in customer satisfaction.

Benefits of RFID for Textile rental companies

. Soiled garment check-in can be conducted inside of the delivery bags saving time and increasing accuracy.

. Clean garments can be automatically or semi-automatically sorted saving significant labor costs.

. RFID enables automated customer premises garment collectors and dispensers allowing for further reduction of end-customer costs and increased textile services margins.

RFID in the Fashion Apparel Industry

Many Fashion Apparel & Textile companies - particularly those with a large network of stores - are well underway in terms of streamlining their supply chain and optimising sales forecasts and distribution. They are now looking for ways to enhance revenues and market share by adopting modern ways of managing stores and inventory. RFID has now become a centrepiece in their strategic thinking.

Usefulness of RFID in Textile Supply Chain

We can conclude following advantages from several functions of RFID:

This technology is able to compute the total expenditure of commodities in the clumsy situations automatically. Therefore, it diminishes manoeuvring expenses, accelerates the inspecting process, cuts down faults at the cash register, doubles customer satisfaction and reduces pilfering. With RFID retailers can have an excellent visibility into store operations, which include obtaining back room stock information, stock outs and the locations of inventory in the store. This visibility improves both customer service leads and commodities safety efforts.

Since all the commodities are equipped with the detectors of RFID, retailers are able to have physical confirmation of inventories for number of times everyday or whenever required. Once Inventory counts are created, they can be accomplished within few minutes without any human requirements. Retailers can enjoy the savings of bundle of dollars every year by cutting down physical counts.

Extra security for goods, improvement in the visibility and decrease in the cost of mobile commodities can be offered by RFID tags. They are perfect in sending right commodities to the right place in good time. Effectiveness of Supply Chain not only reduces labour force but also enhances sales.

Items can be labelled and tracked electronically with RFID tags. For instance, asset tracking normally results into better commodity management in stores. RFID has the ability to recognize origins of change and fabrication and can help in removing pilfering.

Benefits

RFID is not new. The challenge has always been to identify when it is appropriate to apply the technology to your particular supply chain model.

The technology itself offers an opportunity to scan many items simultaneously because it does not need individual line of sight for each item. Thus, a pallet arriving in a warehouse with 10 cases is scanned once, reading all 10 cases simultaneously - including the two in the center of the pallet hidden from the human eye.

Additionally, the ability to store more information on a tag than a bar code enables application of the electronic product code (EPC) to identify items uniquely.

Many opportunities across inventory management, batch management and logistics exist. One opportunity with RFID is automating basic tracking of products. Current manual processes require employees to scan and record data as items move. RFID can help automate this. For instance, if a pallet of yarn has a RFID tag on it and your forklift has a RFID reader aboard; your driver has immediate information of the contents of the pallet when he pulls close enough for the reader to communicate with the tag. Based on that, he knows where that pallet belongs. When it is time to load a knitting machine with yarn, RFID helps locate the pallet stored in the warehouse, wherever it may have been moved, and alerts the driver to its current location.

Another benefit is in the area of batch management and quality assurance. For instance, the possibility of mixing lots of yarn on a knitting machine will be reduced, as you now match a particular lot of yarn with the knitting machine and the production order. The reader on the knitting machine will alert the operator if yarn entering its perimeter is incorrect.

Data carrier and communication device need not to be connected physically. For a common garment retailer is happy to know that instead of walking down each lane in the store or warehouse to check inventory, workers can perform their action from the same premises and accomplish the calculation of inventory in minutes.

Read/write capacities can be conducted within the same assembly line or remotely across continents.

Mobile-tracking tools can be reutilised or disposed, as per the requirement of RFID operation.

In proportion to barcode system, which has 2 to 3 percent failure rate, RFID is able to achieve 100% scanning rate when the item is being scanned for the first time.

Numerous tags can be read at the same time. 'Cluster Reading', as the procedure is known, enhances the data piling process significantly.

RFID improves retailer's ability to scan past all sorts of weather and through other surroundings like metals, bodies of water and dirt. This capacity of RFID easily overshadows barcode scanning which normally fails. Total expenses of retailer's scanning procedures are reduced by RFID and since RFID can beef up preciseness and data availability, these reduced expenses will turn into savings of time and money.

Finally, the logistics benefit comes from automating the manifest as a container is being loaded. As a roll of fabric passes through the RFID-enabled dock door to the truck, that roll is automatically added to the manifest. If you were to have the truck pass through a second canopy on the way out of the yard, you can again match what's on the truck with the manifest.

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RFID Remodels Supply Chain Management

Can you imagine 100% visibility of product in a Supply Chain with RFID tags to whole warehouse? RFID is major advancement in supply chain management. Although large range of applications supported by the radio-frequency identification technology, now supply chain management is on it?s focus. RFID is taught as the ultimate Supply Chain solution that will drive millions if not billions of savings throughout the supply chain and other areas. The question in the air is: Does RFID really has this ?healing? power? From the ordinary process, such as moving goods through loading docks, to the complex, such as managing huge amount of data as information about goods is collected in real time makes RFID as an ultimate supply chain solution.

The way we handle products in the Supply Chain will radically change the transformational RFID technology. It brings transparency in supply chain by cut out-of-stocks, counterfeit and shrinkage. Manpower savings is one of the most important features of the RFID supply chain management system. It is flexible for all kind of applications; range will grow when RFID combined with other sensors.

Initially RFID is used to manage the large amount of goods like pallet and cartoon labels, identification. So RFID tags must have unique serial identifier for each batch of the product at the lading time, on the bill. It makes the less possibility of redundant data entry by scanning the RFID tag. The reason is RFID tag reader can scan many tags during a 1-second period.

There are 2 types of RFID tags: passive and active. When reader reads the passive tag, Reader received the energy through tag?s antenna and transmits the data in the form of energy back. The main reason of widely used passive tags is its low cost.

Active tag uses own power supplies mostly battery and transmit data to the reader. Battery is also used with other devices. For e.g. Active tags may be used with some kind of unpreserved goods that have thermometers to ensure the goods are kept at an acceptable temperature. It is very difficult to standardize the encoding information on RFID intelligent tags for supply chain management for bar codes.

The standards for basic product information is encoded in RFID chips and standard to manage UPC information in bar codes are presented by EPCglobal Inc.

The entire standard for information passing from RFID readers to other applications and from application to application, in supply chain are established by EPCglobal.

These standards becomes useful when goods are ship from one company to company in terms of electronic transaction that will occur in between organization?s enterprise resource planning systems. These standards maintain every time when middleware handles data scanned by an RFID reader as goods enter a warehouse and will pass the data to an enterprise application.

On the other hand it includes costs to the supply chain. But the investment in front of good ROI is not matter in case of RFID solutions.

you can find better RFID supply chain managment system at http://www.agilesense.com

Asset Tracking with RFID Technology

RFID technology adds a new chapter in asset tracking technology. Now a day when large amount of valuable data, asset and people are needed for big projects, basic need of effective and efficient tracking system is increasing day by day. In this situation RFID technical solutions are being so effective.

Forgetting the thing is the common nature of human being but some times, this nature brought a dreadful condition. But to remember each and every thing is not possible. Asset tracking system helps you to track your important and valuable assets. For this reason there are many products and tracking systems are in the market.

Radio Frequency Identification is a groundbreaking technology for this field. Now there is no need to store whole history and full description about them every time. RFID tags are the simpler way to track them. Every tagged asset can be tracked by interpreting the upcoming radio signals from each tag.

RFID software solutions are used to track the particular server down in a huge data center. To identify and locate the packages in warehouse, warehouse manager add video with the all time favorite RFID intelligent tags.

Supply chain management, manufacturing and retailing are major area where long- range RFID solutions will be available in near future. The Forrester Research, provocatively entitled ?BI Vendors Are Sleeping Through RFID?s Arrival,? by Keith Gile and Philip Russom which includes Cognos, SAS, Business objects (Profile, Product, Articles) and application vendors such as SAP- showed till now, there is no any application specific solution for interpreting RFID data and it may not be possible until 2010.

Asset tracking system with pioneering RFID technology is not so far away from you. At agilesense.com, you can find long range of RFID technical solutions for all kind of your asset tracking needs.

RFID technical solutions for all kind of your asset tracking needs ends at agilesense.com.

RFID Pharmaceutical Services

RFID Technology also enters in the world of Pharmaceutical companies, distributors, and hospitals to discourage drug counterfeiting. The report of The World Health Organization shows between 5 to 8 percent of global pharmaceuticals is counterfeit. In some countries, It is higher and between 25 to 40 percent.

In the fight against counterfeit drugs RFID have it?s own additional benefits. The pharmaceutical industry runs on the data information of throughout the process of drug trials, manufacturing, distribution and retail sale. RFID is known for it?s tremendous ability to uniquely identify each item and securely capture date without during whole supply chain. Pharmaceutical industry is blessed by RFID technology:

? Supply Chain: RFID has ability to deep insight, visibility and efficiency during the supply chain. RFID present a good chance to provide 100 percent visibility of inventory, making it easier and quicker to handle goods transaction to the right place in the right channel. The technology improves productivity in shipping and receiving, reduce touch labor, increase the assurance of shipping and providing accuracy, and expanding product availability at the retail store, thus reducing customer complaints and charge backs.

? Pharmaceutical responsibility and Brand Protection: Technology helps to reduce the responsibility at every point of supply chain, reduces the inventory losses. Every year 6-10 percent of retail inventory is stolen and diverted. Benefit of the new technology is presented when returns are properly shipped from right manufacturer, at proper price. RFID also helps to prevent "gray market" distribution, which costs companies and their customers hundreds of millions of dollars each year.

? Pharmaceutical Product: RFID provides Safety, Recalls, and Regulatory Requirements. RFID take care about the expiration dates and improving expiration management. The technology can store preliminary information that satisfying regulatory requirement. RFID reduce the time spent to identifying products targeted for recall and reducing the likelihood of a mass-market recall of branded products by zeroing individual items and capturing manufacturing data.

RFID technology improves the drug usage tracking during whole clinical-phase testing. Technology Improve the reliability and speed of the United States Food and Drug Administration to drug approval process by improved tracking and accountability. So the use of RFID is going to be standard for pharmaceutical companies.

RFID solution implemented for many more different fields:

? Corporate Security

? Fraud Prevention

? Legal & Regulatory Affairs

? Loss Prevention

? RFID Technology

? Security Operations

? Supply Chain

? Transportation & Distribution

RFID made data maintenance easier. Data Capturing, managing, and reviewing data anywhere and anytime affect your business directly or indirectly. Dynamic maintenance of your huge data and any kind of asset provides you better flexibility.

find more- RFID solutions

The Relationship Between RFID Technology and ID Cards

The relationship between RFID technology and ID cards is close and personal. While both types of identification work extremely well individually, their efficacy together is amazing. For example, while it is conceivable that even the best ID cards can be forged, or lost and used by unscrupulous individuals, a card using RFID technology offers numerous protections.

If a card is lost, but has an RID tag, it can easily be tracked. While this may not lead to the apprehension of the individual who originally took it, it could lead to the card itself, and any damages could then be reversed.

Another, simpler way that RFID technology helps in the use of ID cards is via readers, the strongest of which can scan information up to thirty meters or more away. This displaces the tedium of a physical reader and allows people in the area to use the system more effectively.

This is especially important in work environments and places like schools with a high volume of people. If people simply have to flash their card at a reader, this speeds up traffic a great deal. Besides work and school environments, RFID technology and ID cards work in many other ways as well.

A scenario that this combination would prove extremely capable at aiding would be traffic crossing tolls on bridges. An ID card could have an RFID tag that would allow for a prepaid toll card. The driver would then flash the card at the reader as they drove by; they would only have to slow down, not stop, and wouldn't have to fumble for change or money.

In fact, RFID tags are used in this way already, although without the ID card, in the Bay Area as an optional payment method for traffic crossing the Golden Gate Bridge. Called the 'FasTrak' the tag is mounted in the window and operates on a prepaid system so all the car has to do is slow down to be read and then continue on its way.

The areas in which ID cards and RFID technology can be combined and used are many, and their increasing use together portends greater levels of security for those in work, school and other environments.

DiscountID.com is the worldwide low-price leader in photo ID card printers and security products. For more information, visit Discountid.com.

Marcela De Vivo writes for the Discountid.com

RFID Pharmaceutical services:

RFID Technology also enters in the world of Pharmaceutical companies, distributors, and hospitals to discourage drug counterfeiting. The report of The World Health Organization shows between 5 to 8 percent of global pharmaceuticals is counterfeit. In some countries, It is higher and between 25 to 40 percent. In the fight against counterfeit drugs RFID have it's own additional benefits. The pharmaceutical industry runs on the data information of throughout the process of drug trials, manufacturing, distribution and retail sale. RFID is known for it's tremendous ability to uniquely identify each item and securely capture date without during whole supply chain. Pharmaceutical industry is blessed by RFID technology:

? Supply Chain: RFID has ability to deep insight, visibility and efficiency during the supply chain. RFID present a good chance to provide 100 percent visibility of inventory, making it easier and quicker to handle goods transaction to the right place in the right channel. The technology improves productivity in shipping and receiving, reduce touch labor, increase the assurance of shipping and providing accuracy, and expanding product availability at the retail store, thus reducing customer complaints and charge backs.

? <b.Pharmaceutical responsibility and Brand Protection: Technology helps to reduce the responsibility at every point of supply chain, reduces the inventory losses. Every year 6-10 percent of retail inventory is stolen and diverted. Benefit of the new technology is presented when returns are properly shipped from right manufacturer, at proper price. RFID also helps to prevent "gray market" distribution, which costs companies and their customers hundreds of millions of dollars each year.

? Pharmaceutical Product: RFID provides Safety, Recalls, and Regulatory Requirements. RFID take care about the expiration dates and improving expiration management. The technology can store preliminary information that satisfying regulatory requirement. RFID reduce the time spent to identifying products targeted for recall and reducing the likelihood of a mass-market recall of branded products by zeroing individual items and capturing manufacturing data.

RFID technology improves the drug usage tracking during whole clinical-phase testing. Technology Improve the reliability and speed of the United States Food and Drug Administration to drug approval process by improved tracking and accountability. So the use of RFID is going to be standard for pharmaceutical companies.

RFID solution implemented for many more different fields: ? Corporate Security ? Fraud Prevention ? Legal & Regulatory Affairs ? Loss Prevention ? RFID Technology ? Security Operations ? Supply Chain ? Transportation & Distribution

RFID made data maintenance easier. Data Capturing, managing, and reviewing data anywhere and anytime affect your business directly or indirectly. Dynamic maintenance of your huge data and any kind of asset provides you better flexibility.

Diana

Asset tracking with RFID technology:

RFID technology adds a new chapter in asset tracking technology. Now a day when large amount of valuable data, asset and people are needed for big projects, basic need of effective and efficient tracking system is increasing day by day. In this situation RFID technical solutions are being so effective.

Forgetting the thing is the common nature of human being but some times, this nature brought a dreadful condition. But to remember each and every thing is not possible. Asset tracking system helps you to track your important and valuable assets. For this reason there are many products and tracking systems are in the market.

Radio Frequency Identification is a groundbreaking technology for this field. Now there is no need to store whole history and full description about them every time. RFID tags are the simpler way to track them. Every tagged asset can be tracked by interpreting the upcoming radio signals from each tag.

RFID software solutions are used to track the particular server down in a huge data center. To identify and locate the packages in warehouse, warehouse manager add video with the all time favorite RFID intelligent tags.

Supply chain management, manufacturing and retailing are major area where long- range RFID solutions will be available in near future. The Forrester Research, provocatively entitled "BI Vendors Are Sleeping Through RFID's Arrival," by Keith Gile and Philip Russom which includes Cognos, SAS, Business objects (Profile, Product, Articles) and application vendors such as SAP- showed till now, there is no any application specific solution for interpreting RFID data and it may not be possible until 2010.

Asset tracking system with pioneering RFID technology is not so far away from you. At agilesense.com, you can find long range of RFID technical solutions for all kind of your asset tracking needs.

Diana

RFID Applications

RFID, Radio Frequency Identification is a technology, which includes wireless data capture and transaction processing. Proximity (short range) and Vicinity (long range) are two major application areas where RFID technology is used. Track and trace applications are long range or vicinity applications. This technology provides additional functionality and benefits for product authentication. Access control applications are Short range or proximity type of applications.

AgileSense Technologies is focused on delivering innovative, high value RFID solutions assisting company's track assets, people and documents. AgileSense provides robust and complete RFID solutions built on top of its extensible middleware/framework for Government, Healthcare, Manufacturing and Aerospace industries.

Asset Tracking: Static or in-motion assets tracking or locating, like a healthcare facility, wheelchairs or IV pumps in, laptops in a corporation and servers in a data center, was not so easy task.

User can instantly determine the general location of tagged assets anywhere within the facility with the help of active RFID technology. "Control point" detection zones at strategic locations throughout the facility allow the user to define logical zones and monitor high traffic areas. Tagged assets moving through these control points provide instant location data.

Asset tracking applications will see an almost vertical growth curve in the coming years and the growth rate in this area will be much higher than the growth rate of general RFID market.

People Tracking: People tracking system are used just as asset tracking system. Hospitals and jails are most general tracking required places.

Hospital uses RFID tags for tracking their special patients. In emergency patient and other essential equipment can easily track. It will be mainly very useful in mental care hospitals where doctors can track each and every activity of the patient. Hospitals also use these RFID tags for locating and tracking all the activities of the newly born babies.

The best use of the people tracking system will be in jails. It becomes an easy tracking system to track their inmates. Many jails of different US states like Michigan, California, Arizona are already using RFID-tracking systems to keep a close eye on jail inmates.

Document tracking: This is most common problem. Availability of large amount of data and documents brings lots of problem in document management system. An RFID document-tracking system saves time and money by substantially reducing: ?Time spent searching for lost document ? The financial and legal impact associated with losing documents.

Government Library: Many government libraries use barcode and electromagnetic strips to track various assets. RFID technology uses for reading these barcodes unlike the self-barcode reader RFID powered barcode reader can read multiple items simultaneously. This reduces queues and increases the number of customers using self-check, which in turn will reduce the staff necessary at the circulation desks.

Healthcare: Patient safety is a big challenge of healthcare vertical. Reducing medication errors, meeting new standards, staff shortages, and reducing costs are the plus points of use of RFID solutions. RFID wristbands containing patient records and medication history address several of these concerns.

Manufacturing & Aerospace: RFID technology provides an easy way to manage a huge and laborious manufacturing process. It offers all the benefits of small production parts to batch, processes and manufacturing. This type of process helps in better analysis, reduce and eliminate bottlenecks, reduced time in locating parts and products and production process based sensors can be installed to alert any anomalies.

Aerospace industry and Department of Defense have a lot to gain from RFID integration into their production and process lines. Boeing and airbus, according to the direction of US Federal Aviation Administration, make it mandatory to put an appropriate tracking mechanism to track the aircraft parts.

All these RFID solutions are available for you in under the roof of Agilesense.com. Choose Agilesense as your default RFID solution provider.

Diana

RFID Remodels Supply Chain Management:

Can you imagine 100% visibility of product in a Supply Chain with RFID tags to whole warehouse? RFID is major advancement in b>supply chain management.Although large range of applications supported by the radio-frequency identification technology, now supply chain management is on it's focus. RFID is taught as the ultimate Supply Chain solution that will drive millions if not billions of savings throughout the supply chain and other areas. The question in the air is: Does RFID really has this "healing" power? From the ordinary process, such as moving goods through loading docks, to the complex, such as managing huge amount of data as information about goods is collected in real time makes RFID as an ultimate supply chain solution. The way we handle products in the Supply Chain will radically change the transformational RFID technology. It brings transparency in supply chain by cut out-of-stocks, counterfeit and shrinkage. Manpower savings is one of the most important features of the RFID supply chain management system. It is flexible for all kind of applications; range will grow when RFID combined with other sensors.

Initially RFID is used to manage the large amount of goods like pallet and cartoon labels, identification. So RFID tags must have unique serial identifier for each batch of the product at the lading time, on the bill. It makes the less possibility of redundant data entry by scanning the RFID tag. The reason is RFID tag reader can scan many tags during a 1-second period.

There are 2 types of RFID tags: passive and active. When reader reads the passive tag, Reader received the energy through tag's antenna and transmits the data in the form of energy back. The main reason of widely used passive tags is its low cost.

Active tag uses own power supplies mostly battery and transmit data to the reader. Battery is also used with other devices. For e.g. Active tags may be used with some kind of unpreserved goods that have thermometers to ensure the goods are kept at an acceptable temperature.

It is very difficult to standardize the encoding information on RFID intelligent tags for supply chain management for bar codes. The standards for basic product information is encoded in RFID chips and standard to manage UPC information in bar codes are presented by EPCglobal Inc.

The entire standard for information passing from RFID readers to other applications and from application to application, in supply chain are established by EPCglobal.

These standards becomes useful when goods are ship from one company to company in terms of electronic transaction that will occur in between organization's enterprise resource planning systems. These standards maintain every time when middleware handles data scanned by an RFID reader as goods enter a warehouse and will pass the data to an enterprise application.

On the other hand it includes costs to the supply chain. But the investment in front of good ROI is not matter in case of RFID solutions.

Diana

The heart of RFID System

RFID, Radio Frequency Identification System consists of a tag, a reader and a host system. Host system takes care about the flow of information, sending and receiving to and from the reader and tag. Air interface or Radio Frequency is the medium for data transmission. There are two types of RFID Systems: Near field and far field. Near-field systems are that in which inductive coupling of the tag employ to the reactive energy circulating around the reader antenna, and far-field systems that couple to the real energy contained in propagating electromagnetic plane waves.

The reader contains a radio frequency module, a signal processing and micro controller unit, a coupling element and the interface to a host system. There are many different kinds of readers on the market, such as desktop, hand-held, tunnel or gate/gantry style readers. The host system controls the data flow between the readers and tags. It can be as simple as a personal computer connected to the reader by an RS-232 serial cable.

RFID systems bring a revolution in UPC or EAN barcodes systems. RFID technology has many important advantages over existing barcode systems. ? The ability to scan or read a product without line of sight, ? Multiple product reads in one pass and ? Being able to store a larger amount of information are all key advantages over barcodes.

Diana Heyden

RFID In Retail Industry

RFID in retail industry has solved major problems related to customer services. Improved customer service would ultimately lead to increased sales. With the help of RFID, it becomes easy for the sales staff to locate a particular item in the store and check its availability in less time. It gives accessibility to the products from store to store and also to the entire database.

Improves the level of customer service

The overall time spent by the customer in shopping is reduced as the desired item is found in less time making shopping a better experience. Also while scanning of a particular product is done this technology provides access to the information about the product. It calculates the prices of the products kept in the shopping bag simultaneously, so the shopper is aware of how much he/she is spending. As the total of the shopping done is already calculated the customer has to just pay, thus waiting time for billing is reduced.

Increases customer's loyalty

The RFID tags attached to the items has the ability to provide feeling of a 'virtual personalized shopper' to the customer. It also facilitates in tracking down the shopping preferences and habit of the customers and thus helps in introducing right rewards connected to it. The information about customer's shopping style, their shopping history, past purchases, etc can be tracked down, thus value added services could be provided to them giving the customer the feel of personalized treatment. Even decision regarding purchase of a product could be made in fitting room, as the RFID readers in fitting rooms that are connected to the computer, provides all information regarding the garment. Also the information related to the item is confidential and not to be unveiled to the customer, can be protected by your IT department. Thus security is also ensured from seller point of view also. These added benefits lead to better shopping experience for the customer which ultimately leads to customer loyalty towards your shopping hub.

Better inventory management

Scanning of bar code has become mandatory in inventory processing, but it has certain drawbacks compared to RFID technology. The bar code stickers show human errors as it has the capacity to encode limited and stagnant information. Bar code is unable to read or write multiple codes. RFID's capacity to track the items efficiently and encode multiple codes, resulting improved inventory management. It provides better safety in terms of fast recall of the stock and minimizes the theft also. It helps the supplier in maintaining the stock of goods and keeping the shelf filled with goods whenever needed. So the customers would never face storage of a product thus avoiding loss of sales and profit. The key element in today's market is to maintain appropriate in-stocks and not having too much additional inventory.

To manage inventory is a costly affair for the retailer. The information accessed through RFID helps in keeping a check on the inventory and its supply. Thus, maintaining the right percentage of inventory. The ratio of demand and supply can be well maintained as the items which has increased sales is tracked down and the stock is uploaded likewise.

Item level tracking

Item level tracking is the most important objective of RFID system. This tracking gives a personalized ID to every unit of inventory. This results in better tracking of the items. As it saves time, the re-ordering of the items becomes easy and can be done in lesser time. The percentage of shrinkage is reduced due to proper and timely shipments of the items.

Futuristic view

Advanced technologies are being developed in the field of RFID tags that are more advanced technologically and are of reduced costs. Generally the cost of RFID tags range from twenty cents to one dollar which is not so reasonable cost. Therefore in order to make it cheaper, the prices are required to fall to five cents instead of twenty cents. RFID tags are a part of RFID system so in order to increase its usage, and required to be cost effective. The future of RFID is very bright in retail sector as right from inventory management to product manufacturing, this system provides more efficient and advanced retail experience to both customer and the seller.

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When RFID Meets WiFi; Now that is Good Use of Technology

With RFID Tags (radio frequency identification) there are active tags, which have enough power to transmit to the system. But now RFID Tag developers have gone one step further using RFID tags and interfaced WiFi enablers to them so the active RFID Tag can transmit in the 2.45 Ghz range using end user or destination companies wireless 802.11 WiFi network.

Pretty cool beans indeed and these new systems have been talked about in Industry White Papers, but only in theory, but now they exist and there was a write up about them in the May/June Issue of RFID Journal. The developers of the active RFID RTLS (real-time locating systems) are happy with the interest in the market place.

Some industry analysts are already calling them the World?s Most Expensive RFID tags at $50.00 to $60.00 per pop, yet that is not really true as the solar charging active RFID tags cost more than that currently. Still as the industry is trying to get the price for RFID tags under $.20 and eventually down to $.15 and then $.10 and then $.05 you can see why they are barking about the costs.

However for high-end goods for AeroSpace, Weapons Systems, Health-Care Equipment, etc. the price of $50.00 is not so bad and these tags are reusable of course. So far two companies are braving this new field; AeroScout.com and Ekahau.com and these little units look pretty neat, maybe you might want to check it out yourself? Consider this in 2006.

Lance Winslow, a retired entrepreneur, adventurer, modern day philosopher and perpetual tourist

RFID Technology: A New Revolution

RFID technology brings revolution not only in functionality of tracking systems but in healthcare, libraries and field of manufacturing etc. also. Here I give you a brief description about RFID technology, hope it will be helpful for you.

Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) is an automatic identification method, relying on storing and remotely retrieving data using devices called RFID tags or transponders. An RFID tag is a small object that can be attached to or incorporated into a product, animal, or person. RFID tags contain silicon chips and antennas to enable them to receive and respond to radio-frequency queries from an RFID transceiver. Passive tags require no internal power source, whereas active tags require a power source.

RFID is the abbreviated form of Radio Frequency Identification. RFID is akin to the bar codes but in RFID the electro magnetic coupling is used to transmit signals. The main components of an RFID are silicon chips, an antenna and a transceiver that can be used anytime and anywhere. The passive RFID tags require no power source while active ones with power backup.

There are two types of RFID Systems: Near field and far field. Near-field systems are that in which inductive coupling of the tag employ to thereactive energy circulating around the reader antenna, Far-field systems that couple to the real energy contained in propagating electromagnetic plane waves.

RFID is like a tag in which information and instructions are stored. It can be used in a car manufacturing, into a dog collar etc. An RFID system can range up to 90 feet. Unlike barcode technology, RFID does not require line-of-sight reading on which a bar code depends and RFID scanning can be done at greater distances than bar code scanning.

The reader contains a radio frequency module, a signal processing and micro controller unit, a coupling element and the interface to a host system. There are many different kinds of readers on the market, such as desktop, hand-held, tunnel or gate/gantry style readers. The host system controls the data flow between the readers and tags. It can be as simple as a personal computer connected to the reader by an RS-232 serial cable.

RFID has a plethora of uses. While initially the technology was just confined to tracing or identifying dogs, for a means of permanent identification number, the uses of RFID have simply multiplied over the years. Today RFID technology is seen in almost every field. Be it medicine, education (like library work), shipping, electronic devices automobiles, musical instruments, tracking movements of individuals via their passports etc, everywhere the RFID technology is at work.

RFID technology is becoming more widespread due to the manufacturing of RFID software. Now a days there are many effective and efficient RFID software solutions in the market. RFID technichal solutions bring new means to view your asset tracking and maintaing capability. So enjoy technology J????.

Rfid Technology is growing day by day to find out more about Rfid Solutions please visit http://www.agilesense.com

RFID : Is Radio Frequency ID the Wave of the Future?

Here?s something you don?t often hear ? how are you dealing with ?rifid?? OR RFID. If you DO often hear it, then this article isn?t for you, it?s far too simplistic. However, if you have never heard of RFID before, read on. It might just change your life, or at least the way you organize it. Radio Frequency Identification or RFID is the use of radio waves to identify objects; in English, the ability to track items without coming into contact with them. This is accomplished by a microchip attached to an antenna called transponders or ?tags?. The chip transmits ID information to the receiver which converts it to a digital format which is then read by a computer.

RFID isn?t new, its been with us in its current guise since the early 80s, and around since the 1920s ? you know the tag that they stick on jackets in the clothes store to stop you stealing them? However, its just grown up; businesses can track products throughout the manufacturing process from start to finish. These items can be tracked while in trucks, on shelves, wherever.

The Benefits of RFID include:
1. The ability to eliminate time consuming bar-coding or other tracking processes. Instead, all data can be collected along the production line. This also helps to lower production costs.
2. Prevention of the distribution of counterfeit products.
3. Elimination or reduction of theft and loss.
4. Reduction of supply chain cost.
5. Elimination of data entry and other tedious manual business process transactions.
6. Increase in order fulfillment time
7. Less time spent in check out lines, as consumers will only have to push their shopping carts in front of the readers.

The predominant downside is the high cost of the RFID hardware. Where tags alone can cost twenty five cents each or more, many retailers won?t get much of a return, if any, on their investment.

It?s hoped that Wal-Mart, the Defense Department and others will start using RFID, which could cause the prices of the tags to drop to five cents each, making it a more affordable solution for many.

Jamie Hall is a middleware developer of RFID systems and Programmer for Big Blog Media. And writes for RFID Factfile

Amalgamation Of Metal Containers With Rfid Technology

RFID and metal containers do not complement each other well, until we don?t know the scientific method of implementing RFID. So it is possible to use them together with reliable results if proper application is known.

Metal containers are desirable because of their certain distinguishable properties like- they are safe, strong, long-lasting, reusable and shielding. But it is generally assumed that metal containers are headache to manage and track to, also to get permission from environmental agency to use and track them. However by use of mobile asset management solution the metal containers can be managed properly and tracked with RFID technology. The answer to its successful application is ? use of science.

Problems faced

Radio waves have the property of being absorbed by water at ultra-high frequencies and revert back by the metal surface. For example our body contains saltwater therefore serves as a shield against RFID waves. Generally metal interferes with RFID signals thus pose a challenge for supply chain that is RFID enabled. The effectiveness of the RFID field is reduced when the eddy currents are produced by metal in the surrounding area of the RFID reader antennae as it absorbs radio frequency energy. A magnetic field is formed by these eddy currents which is perpendicular to the metal surface. Due to this field, the reader field is cancelled.

Detuning

Metal surface causes electromagnetic friction which results into energy depletion thus reduction of performance, and detune of reader and tag antenna. RFID which is installed in heavy metal surroundings could reduce the ranges, reliabilities and actual read & write rates. These reductions are more than what is experienced in controlled lab condition of RFID pilots. However these problems can be overcome by the usage of proper scientific designed and engineered system. Companies are looking forward to this system solution.

In the area of supply chain management RFID technology is being used in a metal environment to track and manage high-value, reusable mobile assets and their contents. Mobile assets are used to carry raw materials, work in progress and the final finished goods in supply chains. These mobile assets are however expensive and also its contents are also expensive and time critical. RFID is useful in many manners, the information produced by it can be used to improve the planning and execution of the distribution channel.

Advantages

RFID technology helps in reduction of loss rates, maintenance costs, distribution costs, and better customer service. It facilitates in identifying market trends and reduction of selling price of the goods. Companies can even bring into line the rates of the container with the assessment stream resultant from the investment in the container, its release and the technology included. Most of the companiesusing RFID system were found to be using this technology for asset tracking as it provides the return on investment to the manufacturer.

A combination of asset acquisition and management services with technology and RFID facilitates to discover and eliminate the hidden costs of supply chain which includes assets, transportation costs, finished goods, product waste and inventory. Most of these management services work on pay-per-use basis, it enables the companies to improve the quality of customer service and also minimizes operating expenses and manages asset contents successfully.

Certain mobile asset management solution providers do offer RFID of low cost which could be installed in surroundings with high metal content. The worth of RFID is produced by the resolution provider from the consequent generation of enhanced trade rules that results efficient procedure and process.

Conclusion

To conclude usage of RFID tracking technology can be used successfully in environment with high metal content. Mobile asset management solution providers have solved this problem to a great extent by experimenting and introducing system with advanced design and engineering. Therefore it is beneficial to for companies to adopt RFID tracking technology.

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RFID and 1984

"Necessity is the plea for every infringement of human freedom. It is the argument of tyrants; it is the creed of slaves." ~ William Pitt

Introduction:
RFID stands for Radio Frequency Identification and is a newer technology that is already being used for a number of purposes. Those of you that swipe a card on a magnetic reader to enter your work building, may be using RFID. Other common uses include package tracking by UPS, inventory control, targeting advertising to consumers, tracking pets and livestock, and the replacement of credit cards. Next will be the tracking of Americans by a big-brother government. While RFID does offer many attractive uses that can save time and money, the technology is already being widely abused and has serious security and privacy concerns.

Security Concerns:
RFID works by emitting a radio signal that is read by a reader. I have read a wide variety of numbers as to how far a chip can currently be read - 33ft and 100ft are 2 of the common maximum distances that I have seen. The distance currently depends mostly on the strength of the reader, however, chipmaker VeriChip is currently working on GPS versions that can be read from much greater distances and also provide the additional benefit of tracking the location of an object or a person. Obviously, as time moves forward more advances will be made to this technology that will make it more powerful and more dangerous.

The security concerns stem from the fact that a hacker with the right equipment can easily scan an RFID chip and either acquire the information stored on it, or, if used for gaining entry, they can replicate it in order to access secure areas.

In August of 2006, the United States will begin including RFID chips in passports. In addition to the privacy concerns, there are massive security concerns as a hacker can easily gain access to your personal information. Our government has been presented this information by thousands of security experts and their only response was to include very minimal security measures that will inevitably be overcome. The Netherlands has been using RFID chips in their passports for just a short time and the security has already been cracked. In 2008, the US government will introduce a national ID card that will also contain an RFID chip with your personal information. The federal government has told the state governments that the new ID is voluntary. They also said that if the states do not embrace the new ID, their citizens will not be able to fly on a plane, take a train, get a bank account, get a job, and a number of other "priveledges". That is the federal government's version of voluntary.

Privacy Issues:
The fundamental privacy issue with RFID is that it can and will be used to track Americans and their actions. President Bush already proposed the idea of forcing illegal immigrants to get RFID implants in order to track their movement and activities and many corporations are embedding RFID tags in their products which will still be functional even after the item is removed from the store.

While currently, the concept of RFID implants under the skin frightens 90% of Americans, corporations and the government are going to sell it to you. The are going to show you that you will no longer have to carry any keys around and can start your car and open your front door by waving your arm in front of them. They are going to sell you on the fact that 98,000 people could be saved in emergency rooms every year if their medical records were implanted on a chip. They are going to tell you that RFID implants will make this country safer because we will be able to tell who isn't chipped and find out why they are here. They will sell you on the benefits of being able to shop without going through a checkout line. They will tell you that a chip can monitor your vital functions and alert you if a problem is detected. They will tell you that they can find your kids if they are lost or kidnapped. They will tell you that an implant will make your life better, easier, and longer. The list will go on and on and the propoganda machine is already in full swing.

What they won't tell you is that once you are implanted, your decendency into slavery is complete. They won't tell you that your boss will use the chip to track your activities during the work day. They won't tell you that the government will be able to track your every movement. They won't tell you that they can take the cash right out of your implanted electronic wallet. They won't tell you that corporations can track your purchases (they already do with membership cards) and target advertising to you. They won't tell you that they will flag you and limit your movement if you are a criminal, dissident, protester, Mexican, Arab, homeless, or any other group that the government doesn't like. They won't tell you that they will track who you meet with and how you spend your time. They won't tell you that your chip might be used by the government to induce a heart attack or stroke and kill you for non-compliance with their fascist government (a little extreme, but definitely possible).

They will tell you that it is a voluntary choice to get the implant, but it will be as voluntary as the National ID card. It is estimated that 2,500 people have already been chipped and when enough ignorant and apathetic Americans get the chip, stores will begin phasing out credit card machines, the government will begin requiring the implants to fly, drive a car, or get a job. It will be as voluntary as taxes.

As a side note, I would like to say that I am not at all religious, however, I do find it ominous and unnerving that the bible basically said this would happen. Chapter 13 of the Book of Revelations states, "He causes all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hand or on their foreheads, and that no one may buy or sell except one who has the mark or the name of the beast, or the number of his name." No matter what you believe, that is quite a prediction from 2000 years ago.

Recent Abuses:
The widespread use of RFID technology is fairly recent, and yet, it is already being abused. Wal-Mart in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, used RFID tags and readers to track the Max Factor Lipfinity lipstick containers stacked on them. Webcam images of the shelves were viewed 750 miles (1200 km) away by Procter & Gamble researchers in Cincinnati, Ohio, who could tell when lipsticks were removed from the shelves and observe the shoppers in action. A pilot program by the Gillette Company conducted a "smart shelf" test at a Tesco in Cambridge, England. They automatically photographed shoppers taking RFID-tagged safety razors off the shelf to see if the technology could be used to deter shoplifting. Levi Strauss is test-marketing the use of embedded RFID tags in their clothing. In January 2004 privacy advocates from CASPIAN and the German privacy group FoeBuD were invited to the METRO Future Store in Germany, where an RFID pilot project was implemented. It was uncovered by accident that METRO "Payback" customer loyalty cards contained RFID tags with customer IDs, a fact that was disclosed neither to customers receiving the cards, nor to this group of privacy advocates. This happened despite assurances by METRO that no customer identification data was tracked and all RFID usage was clearly disclosed.

These are all blatant infringements on our privacy rights which is why there are over 40 civil liberties groups world-wide trying to stop the proliferation of RFID until appropriate standards for use can be set. All of the companies listed above are on my boycott list for failure to comply with the wishes of the American people and civil liberties groups.

Call to Action:
If this sounds like science fiction, you need to realize that people are already getting implanted, including the recent chipping of 160 Mexican Officials. There is a good chance that you will eventually be implanted too, unless we resist. You must resist the National ID card. Tell your representatives that you don't want it and refuse to accept it, even if it means that you can't fly or take a train. Tell others about RFID before it is too late. Many people will have no idea what RFID even is until they get chipped. Wake up and realize that voting for republicans or democrats will end with the same result. Neither one is going to protect you from this. As long as we suffer from corporatism in this country, our fascist government may not even have to be involved in forcing people into getting chipped. They will simply only accept RFID implants as a form of payment and you will not have a choice if you wish to eat and carry out the normal functions of your life.

Further Reading
SpyChips
FDA Approves Computer Chip for Humans
Big Brother Gets Under Your Skin
Bio-chip Implant Arrives for Cashless Transactions
Company Requires RFID Injection
Company Defends RFID Implant Product
A Chip in Your Shoulder
Home for Seniors Trades Privacy for Security

Jason is a concerned citizen hoping to stir questions in people's minds about the state of our nation and the direction we are heading.

RFID- A New Technology Making Waves in the Market

Locating the right item at right place and at the right time is made possible by Radio Frequency IDentification or RFID, as it's known commonly. There are numerous applications of RFID namely inventory tracking, asset management, supply chain management, and so on. This technology enables companies in optimizing the procurement, manufacture, distribution, sales, and tracking of products. Thus, integrating even the last mile of the retail chain with live area - whether it's a store shelf, or a factory floor.

Major retailers, consumer and industrial goods manufacturers across the globe believe that RFID helps them in improving the efficiency of their tracking and inventory management systems. RFID can help in counting, tracking, locating, and securing the objects, which move through supply chains, in an accurate and cost effective manner.

As per a recent market study RFID will continue to be a core element of various business elements throughout the year 2006. Market needs will be the key driver for the worldwide adoption of this technology. Nearly 85%-86% items in convenience stores and supermarkets currently have barcodes. Therefore, we can say that RFID is taking a giant leap and making headway in all sorts of markets. It's returning good turnover.

RFID vendors who're adopting a high pricing strategy will likely evolve their market position on account of enhanced performance and quality. While RFID market's current nascence doesn't necessarily imply a direct relationship between price and quality, this is a possible situation in developed market conditions. The increasing stress on performance within the end user segments will probably have a positive influence on vendors adopting this positioning focus. Mandates that require mere compliance will likely evolve and comprise performance demands in coming years.

RFID will offer competitive advantage in consumer goods, combat terrorism, other crime and also the threats of epidemics. This technology will also serve consumers and governments demanding enhanced service, quick information, condition monitoring, and so on.

For further information on RFID industry you can read the report " RFID Industry Analysis (2006)," published by RNCOS at http://www.rncos.com/Report/COM32.htm

RNCOS is an industry leader in the field of online business research. We specialize in industry research on various business verticals. To read our other reports, please visit us at our website: - http://www.rncos.com/Report.htm or email us at info@rncos.com.


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RFID buzz creates market for more secure services

RFID or Radio Frequency Identification for a layman is all about collecting data at the physical level using RFID readers and tags and then using that data for business applications.

RFID number plates are expected to bring in a revolutionary transformation in the traffic monitoring system. Those gazing surveillance cameras on the roads are soon going to be outdated with the introduction of these hi-tech number plates.

Only 5-6 sectors are utilizing this technology at present. The areas where this technology has already made its place include Security & Access Control where RFID is used for authentication of products, documents & asset management, validation & verification of vehicles and people & attendance check etc.

Besides installing RFID number plates to watch the movement of vehicles on the road, the transportation sector also employs the RFID technology to collect taxes with contact-less cards and keep an eye on public and cargo vehicles.

RFID plays a major role in health care services equipments such as mobile diagnostic equipments or RFID patient wristband. Quality checks in retail & consignment tracking, point of sale terminals, luggage handing and other areas of commercial services also use RFID technology.

Besides assisting the suppliers in meeting the requirements of the retailers, the inclusion of RFID system in supply chain management has also broadened the marketing scope for service providers.

As per a latest research report published by RNCOS named ?RFID: Outlook China? predicts that the application of RFID in the shipment system of China's Ministry of Railway will save more than $ 36Mn, i.e. 300Mn Yuan, during the current financial year.

The report also offers statistical information of the RFID market in China. As per the report, the RFID market in China that was worth $150 Mn in 2004, which is expected to cross $621 Mn by the year 2009 at a CAGR (Cumulative Annual Growth Rate) of 32%.


As per the analysts, China is becoming the latest center of this technology with RFID-based systems being included in Shanghai and Guangzhou?s subways and several buses are also equipped with card reader in Beijing.

As per the report ?RFID: Outlook China?, RFID has entered in every sphere of the Chinese Market. The 2G identity cards cover approximately 50%, whereas each of the sectors such as e-ticketing, expressway toll taxation, university campuses & community services on an average adds to 6% of the RFID market with public transport and subways making a contribution of 10%.

The report offers a complete overview of the current trends and activities in the RFID Market in China. The international exhibition of RFID technology called RFID CONNECT CHINA 2006 event is also discussed in this report.

To purchase your copy: http://www.rncos.com/Report/COM27.htm
For more information please visit www.rncos.com

RFID Market in China continues Growth at 8.55% during Q4 2005

Intel has signed a deal with the Sample group located in Nanjing, to establish its only RFID center for research and development in China.

The RFID research and development center will primarily do research and promotion of RFID industry applications. These applications include intelligent communications management system, aviation luggage management system, warehouse management system, and container positioning management systems.

Intel RFID Centers throughout the world are supposed to interact closely with the Center at China, so that Intel can leverage the Sample Group?s expertise in custom logistics segment to its advantage. Intel is eager to use RFID solutions for quality business decisions and production management.

In its latest published report ?RFID: Outlook China?, the market research firm RNCOS stated that the RFID market in China sustained its modest growth ratio of 8.55% in Q4 of 2005. It further indicated that the manufacturing segment should be prospective entry field for the RFID industry.

The report reveals that the size of the RFID market in China grew from RMB 568 million in the third quarter to RMB 617 million in the fourth quarter in 2005, exhibiting 8.55% rate of growth.

The experts at RNCOS are of the opinion that the exhibited rate of growth is moderate and the market still holds the potential. The report also tells that in the Q4 the RFID market was busy with the launch of 2G ID cards, and implementations in fields where it is already applied on a large scale, such as public transportation, campus management, property/residential area management, etc.

The report further elaborates that China has a great future in the manufacturing sector. There is a large application of logistics and availability of a substantial working capital in manufacturing procedures. Manufacturing companies can bring down their expenditures and boost efficiency through the effective use of RFID implementations to acquire precise logistics data and realize specialized production.

After assessing the challenges and prospects before the RFID industry, experts at RNCOS believe that there are certain limitations to the implementation of RFID in the manufacturing sector. The conformation to international standards and the prohibitive costs are the impediments to the growth of the RFID industry in China.

The RFID technology has been drawing a lot of attention from the industry as well as the government after having established its vast potential in China. Commercial application of RFID will be implemented this year.

As is evident from the latest events, the main factors behind the phenomenal success of the Chinese RFID industry are the support and promotion of the Chinese government and the private sector. This fact is further established, when the Haidian District City Planning Administration confirms, that it is only through the effective implementation of RFID technology, that the municipal facilities and public institutions can be properly managed. They intend to make further use of RFID in the city in the future.


To purchase your copy: http://www.rncos.com/Report/COM27.htm

For more information please visit www.rncos.com

RFID, its implications and how to defeat

Imagine a future in which your every belonging is marked with a unique number identifiable with the swipe of a scanner, where the location of your car is always pinpoint-able and where signal-emitting microchips storing personal information are implanted beneath your skin or embedded in your inner organs.

This is the possible future of radio frequency identification (RFID), a technology whose application has so far been limited largely to supply-chain management (enabling companies, for example, to keep track of the quantity of a given product they have in stock) but is now being experimented with for passport tracking, among other things. RFID is set to be applied in a whole range of consumer settings. Already being tested in products as innocuous as shampoo, lip balm, razor blades, clothing and cream cheese, RFID-enabled items are promoted by retailers and marketers as the next revolution in customer convenience. Consumer advocates say this is paving the way for a nightmarish future where personal privacy is a quaint throwback.

How RFID works
There are two types of RFID tags: active and passive. When most people talk about RFID, they talk about passive tags, in which a radio frequency is sent from a transmitter to a chip or card which has no power cell per se, but uses the transmitted signal to power itself long enough to respond with a coded identifier. This numeric identifier really carries no information other than a unique number, but keyed against a database that associates that number with other data, the RFID tag's identifier can evoke all information in the database keyed to that number.

An active tag has its own internal power source and can store as well as send even more detailed information.

The RFID value chain involves three parts: the tags, the readers and the application software that powers these systems. From there, the data generated by the application software can interface with other systems used in an enterprise, or, if they obtain the information or collect it themselves, concievably by governments or more nefarious organizations.

Where it?s used today
Global companies such as Gillette, Phillips, Procter & Gamble, Wal-Mart and others see huge savings to be made from the use of RFID, and there are numerous pilot projects underway which are indicating savings in supply chains as well as the ability to add value to both product owner, product reseller and customer.

But they?re just pilots, mostly. RFID is a long way from being everywhere, so far. Pharmaceutical tracking has long been held out as one of the flagship applications of RFID in the short term, yet just some 10 medications are expected be tagged using RFID technology on a large scale in the U.S. during 2006, analysts predict. Slow roll-outs are contrasting sharply with the optimism of a year ago, when evidence suggested tripling or even quadrupling of RFID for consumer goods tracking. Why? Uncertainty over pending legislation. There are a complex mixture of federal and new state laws (in particular Florida and California) intended to combat drug theft and counterfeiting that have implications for RFID. The details are still being worked out.

Where it?s likely to be used tomorrow
Depending which analysts you believe, the market for RFID technology will represent between 1.5 and 30 Billion USD by the year 2010. Analyst firm IDTechEx, which tracks the RFID industry, believes more than 585 billion tags will be delivered by 2016. Among the largest growth sectors, IDTechEx forsees the tagging of food, books, drugs, tires, tickets, secure documents (passports and visas), livestock, baggage and more.

Buses and subways in some parts of the world are being equipped with RFID readers, ready for multi-application e-tickets. These are expected to make things easier for the commuter, and help stem the fraud from the current paper-ticket system. However the biggest problem facing rollouts of RFID for commercial micropayment tracking is apparently not technical, but involves agreeing on the fees charged by the clearing house and how credit from lost and discarded tickets will be divided.

Passport tracking
One of the highest profile uses of RFID will be passport tracking. Since the terrorist attacks of 2001, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security has wanted the world to agree on a standard for machine-readable passports. Countries whose citizens currently do not have visa requirements to enter the United States will have to issue passports that conform to the standard or risk losing their non-visa status.

American and other passports are being developed that include RFID-based chips which allow the storage of considerable amounts of data such as fingerprints and digitized photographs. In the U.S., these passports are due to start being issued in October of 2006. Early in the development of these passports there were gaping security holes, such as the capability of being read by any reader, not just the ones at passport control (the upshot of this was that travelers carrying around RFID passports would have been openly broadcasting their identity, making it easy for wrongdoers to easily ? and surreptitiously ? pick Americans or nationals of other participating countries out of a crowd.)

Those security blunders were initially corrected by adding metal shielding to the passport cover to minimize its readability when closed, dialing back the range of the electronics and adding a special electronic protocol called Basic Access Control (or BAC). This scheme required the passport to be opened and scanned before its data could have been properly interpreted by an RFID receiver. Unfortunately, in early February 2006, Dutch security experts managed to ?listen in? on the communications between a prototype BAC-protected passport and a receiver and cracked the protocol. Which means the international authority developing this new global passport standard may need to go back to the drawing board as of this writing, because ?bad guys? could clearly stand in line at passport control and capture passport information. Details of the Dutch hack here.

Implications for privacy seekers
RFID has clear implications for those who are worried about their privacy and safety. Some of them are obvious, and some of them are not.

- Can be read without your knowledge ? Since the tags can be read without being swiped or obviously scanned (as is the case with magnetic strips or barcodes), anyone with an RFID tag reader can read the tags embedded in your clothes and other consumer products without your knowledge. For example, you could be scanned before you enter the store, just to see what you are carrying. You might then be approached by a clerk who knows what you have in your backpack or purse, and can suggest accessories or other items.
- Can be read a greater distances with a high-gain antenna ? For various technical reasons, RFID reader/tag systems are designed so that distance between the tag and the reader is kept to a minimum. However, a high-gain antenna can actually read tags from much further away, leading to privacy problems. Governments or others could punch through privacy screens and keep tabs on people.
- Difficult to remove ? RFID tags are hard for consumers to remove; some are very small (less than a half-millimeter square, and as thin as a sheet of paper) - others may be hidden or embedded inside a product where consumers cannot see them. New technologies allow RFID tags to be printed right on a product and may not be removable at all
- Disruptions if maliciously jammed ? RF signals can be jammed, which could complicate everyday life if RFID tags became essential. Imagine a central bus or train station, maybe an airport, where suddenly everyone could neither be ID'd or access their cash accounts. A single hour of jamming during morning rush over a large area could cost a large city untold millions of dollars in delayed commerce and transport. It would be worse than a mass-transit strike, and easier to repeat.
- Could be linked to a credit card number ? The Universal Product Code (UPC) implemented with barcodes allows each product sold in a store to have a unique number that identifies that product. Work is proceeding on a global system of product identification that would allow each individual item to have its own number. When the item is scanned for purchase and is paid for, the RFID tag number for a particular item can be associated with the credit card number it was purchased with.
- Potential for counterfeit ? If an RFID tag is being used to authenticate someone, anyone with access to an RFID reader can easily capture and fake someone else?s unique numeric identifier, and therefore, in essence, their electronic 'signature'. If an RFID-tagged smartcard is used for shopping, for instance, anyone who intercepted and reverse-engineered your number, and programmed another card with it, could make charges on your account.
- Marking for crime ? Even after you leave a store, any RFID devices in things you buy are still active. A thief could walk past you in the mall and know exactly what you have in your bags, marking you as a potential victim. Someone could even circle your house with an RFID scanner and pull up data on what you have in your house before robbing it. As a result, there are now discussions of ?zombie? RFID tags that expire upon leaving the store and reanimate if the product is ever returned to the store and returned to the supply chain.
- Marking for violence ? Military hardware and even clothing are beginning to make use of RFID tags to help track these items through supply chains. RFID is being used today by the U.S. military to track materials in Iraq and Afghanistan. Some analysts are concerned about particular items being associated with high-level officers that could trigger roadside bombs via an RFID scan of cars going by. (Thankfully, RFID tags retained close to the body can rarely be scanned. For instance, UHF tags, the kind being most widely deployed, are virtually unreadable near the body because of its high water content.)
Some have suggested that mobile phones are already as great a threat to privacy as RFID. In the case of mobile phones, information about your whereabouts and calling patterns is regularly available to your service provider, a centralized and highly regulated source of information gathering. An adversary with special-purpose equipment would also have the capability of tracking your mobile phone, but this would require significant expertise and investment. See our separate article "Cell phone hazards".

What makes RFID a more significant privacy threat than mobile phones is the fact that readers will be readily available and ubiquitously deployed. In other words, RFID readers will soon be an accepted element of everyday life, while eavesdropping equipment for mobile phones is unlikely to be.

How to thwart RFID technology
There are a few approaches you can take to thwart RFID tags ... but before you take proactive steps, note that sometimes the very absence of a tag or its signal in places it?s expected could arouse suspicion. For instance, if you?re carrying what is expected to be an RFID-tagged passport and your tag isn?t working, say, you may invite unwanted scrutiny. Be careful which tags you choose to disrupt.

The simplest, most permanent approach to disable RFID tags is to destroy them. If you can detect them and wish to permanently render them useless, remove them and smash the small chip component with a hammer. If you?re not sure whether a product you own contains a tag, consider putting it in a microwave to destroy the tag if the object is otherwise safe to be microwaved. Be careful with some plastics. Note there have been reports of RFID materials catching fire in microwaves.

If removing the tag is not practical, there are four general ways to disrupt RFID tag detection.
- Blocking ? Construct a conductive foil box (even tin foil is good) around the tag. If you are concerned about RFID emissions from work badges, school IDs, new generation drivers licenses, credit cards, and even cash in the future containing RFID tags, buy or make an RFID-proof wallet. RFID wallet project details are easy to find on the Internet.
- Jamming ? Since RFID systems make use of the electromagnetic spectrum like wireless networks or cellphones, they are relatively easy to jam using a strong radio signal at the same frequency the tag operates. Although this would only be an inconvenience for consumers in stores (longer waits at the checkout), it could be disastrous in other environments where RFID is increasingly being used, like hospitals, or in military combat situations. Such jamming devices, however, would in most cases violate government regulations on radio emissions. A group of researchers in Amsterdam have theorized that a personal RFID jammer is possible (their paper is linked to from the version of this article that lives at our web site, www.powerprivacy.com) but the device seems only theoretical at this time.
- Repeated interrogation ? Active RFID tags that use a battery to increase the range of the system can be repeatedly interrogated to wear the battery down, disrupting the system.
- Popping ? Generating a very strong pulse of radiation at the right frequency can cause RFID tags to resonate and break.

What strategy you should pursue depends on what RFID privacy threats you are trying to thwart and your technical expertise.