12-11-2012, 03:39 PM
RFID: Prospectives for Germany
RFID Prospectives.pdf (Size: 2.06 MB / Downloads: 43)
Introduction
RFID (radio frequency identification) technology enables contactless identification of objects
via radio waves. It is already being used in many processes in both the private and public
sectors. A real boom in RFID has developed since about 2000. Driven by technical progress
in microelectronics, new groups of users have become deeply involved with new application
possibilities for RFID, which are now being implemented. Leading the way here are retailing
with logistics applications and government agencies with identification systems such as the
electronic passport and the planned digital personal identity card. Other industries, such as
pharmaceuticals and aircraft manufacturing, have seized on this trend and are also discussing
innovative applications intensively. Due to its diverse application possibilities, RFID as a
cross-sectional technology holds great innovation and growth potential – not just for users,
but also for providers of technological products and services.
Many studies have addressed the technical, managerial and regulatory aspects of RFID.
Numerous market studies forecast high growth rates for this market. Nevertheless, no reliable
prognosis has been made yet for the actual macroeconomic effects of RFID on German
users and providers of technological products and services. Will RFID really bring about the
“revolution in logistics” that has sometimes been predicted, or is this new technology merely
the next step in the evolution of the barcode? Are German companies leading in this market
or are they trailing foreign competitors? The need for political and social action on RFID is
also still controversial. Is a separate RFID law needed to ensure data protection in these new
applications? What economic and technology policy instruments would be appropriate to
support German industry in exploiting RFID?
Technology
Similar to a barcode or smart card system, a radio frequency identification (RFID) system is
an automatic identification system that can be used to uniquely label and identify objects or
persons.
An RFID system basically consists of three components (see Figure 1; see Finkenzeller
2006):1
• Tag. A tag, also known as a transponder, is affixed on or in a carrier object, such as a
chip card or pallet, which is to be identified. The term tag (or transponder) denotes a
combination of a chip and an antenna.2 Sensor technology is optional. The chip typically
contains a unique identification number and additional data where appropriate. The antenna
serves as a coupling element to the reader.
• Reader. A reader, also called an interrogator, recognises a tag and communicates with
it, assuming that the tag is within the appropriate range. This range is defined by the
physical parameters of the system. The reader is used to read out the identification
number from the chip, along with additional data when available. With re-writable tags,
the reader can also write data to the tag.
• Data processing system. In most cases, the tag data are processed in a computer
system, such as an inventory control system or an access control system. One exception
to this would be retail anti-theft systems.
Coupling Principles and Transmission Frequencies
RFID systems developed and implemented today make use of the entire frequency spectrum,
from longwave to microwave. Since different frequencies have very different properties,
it is impossible to single out an individual frequency and establish it as the basis for all
RFID applications. Instead, the most appropriate coupling principle and frequency must be
determined individually for each application (see Table 1).
There are three basic coupling principles: inductive, backscatter and capacitive. Of these,
only inductive and backscatter coupling are practically relevant at present.3
In inductive coupling, the reader and tag communicate via the alternating magnetic field of
the reader’s antenna, which induces current in the tag’s aerial coil. This current is used to
power the chip located on the tag. The tag transmits its data to the reader by modulating its
magnetic field. Inductive coupling only functions within the so-called near field, whose dimensions
depend entirely on the frequency of the alternating field. For near-field communication,
there are thus insurmountable physical limits to a reader’s range. This range limit is
3.5 m for the commonly used 13.56 MHz frequency. At 868 MHz, the limit is only about 5.4
cm. Near-field communication is thus used almost exclusively in the lower frequencies,
longwave (30–300 kHz) and shortwave (3–30 MHz). A strong point of these low-frequency
systems is that water and non-conductive materials barely absorb their magnetic fields. On
the other hand, electromagnetic noise fields, which are common in industrial settings, interfere
with inductive systems. Inductive systems represent 90 percent of all RFID systems in
use today (see Finkenzeller 2006).
SOFTWARE
Apart from retail anti-theft systems and simple access systems, the readers in RFID systems
transmit the tag data to backend IT systems, such as an inventory control system or a production
control system.
However, the tag data must first be processed for these backend systems. As a rule, RFID
middleware performs this task (see Figure 2). It communicates with the reader, transfers
data in a consistent format, filters duplicate or faulty information, groups the data into useful
units, and finally notifies the backend system(s) of an event (see Glover and Bhatt 2006).
However, many companies’ management IT systems are not yet geared toward processing
a tag’s real-time transaction data. In part, data transfer to IT systems is still done in batch
mode at relatively long time intervals (batch runs). Moreover, the internal data structures and
functions of these systems are often not set up to handle the much larger volumes of data
that result from tracking a tag in real time. In such cases, either the IT systems need to be
updated to meet the increased demands, or integration middleware can be used to process
the transaction data before transferring it to the backend systems (see Thiesse and Gross
2006). Software integration can account for up to half the cost of an RFID project (see DB
2006).