High capacity small labels: RFID technology

Asurmendi Sainz, Jabier

Informatika-ingeniaria eta Bitarlan-en sortzailea

Get up, pull lazy, go to the kitchen and let the refrigerator itself inform us of the foods that are about to end or meet the expiration date; go shopping by car and warn of a holography to the windshield in case of having dangerous curves near or go at more speed than allowed; fill the shopping cart in the supermarket, avoid the tremendous queue of people a walkway and pay automatically without removing the purchase card. These are some of the possibilities offered by RFID technology and we will have them in the not too distant future.
High capacity small labels: RFID technology
01/05/2006 | Asurmendi Sainz, Jabier | Computer Engineer and Independent Advisor on Communication and Information Technologies
(Photo: Texas Instruments Inc.)

RFID: Radio Frequency Identification in English, radio frequency identification in Basque. The name itself causes any type of object to be identified by radio frequency, by waves, that is, without direct contact.

This system consists of two main components: The same RFID tag, with chip and antenna, and the RFID sensor-receiver or RFID reader. The reader is responsible for collecting, processing and processing the information sent by the label. The label can be like a sticker. It can be placed in animals, in people or in different boxes and products, and can give many data: name, characteristics, colors, customs, dates... It is a portable and powerful data transmission system.

The idea came about in the 1980s, when American researchers tried to develop systems of object recognition and analysis. However, they realized that this involved more problems and difficulties than expected, and thought it was better for the objects themselves to identify. In this way, RFID soon became a reality due to its ability to continue with mobile objects.

Types of RFID tags

There are two types of RFID tags in general: passive and active labels. Passive labels are very special, as they do not need any power supply, so they do not use any battery or battery. Therefore, to obtain the energy needed for response and data transmission, the small reading signals sent by the RFID receiver transmitter are used. That is the essence of the spiral shape of the RFID tag.

RFID tags in packages make it easy to manage them.
Siemens

Passive labels, lacking their own power supply, have the ability to send a small number of data and cannot send them over long distances: From 10 millimeters to 5 meters. On the contrary, the absence of own power supplies allows to develop very small labels. Therefore, they can be placed under cover, in cardboard boxes or in banknotes. In fact, the smallest RFID tag that was on sale in 2005 was 0.40x0.40 millimeters and thinner than a sheet of paper, in one contact four. With this size they can be invisible.

Active tags, on the other hand, have their own power supply and are able to emit further and further data. The strongest can reach 10 kilometers. Memory and data storage capacity is also increased. In addition, active labels are safer in certain environments, for example at very high and low temperatures or near water.

But they also have disadvantages. Because of the power supply, they are larger than liabilities, but currently you can also find size coins. Also, the batteries are finished and then you need to change your own label or battery (some batteries can last several years). On the other hand, passive cards are cheaper, so today most are of this type.

Multiple applications

The small size of the cards allows them to be placed in the most hidden places and are portable. Therefore, they have many applications and are very practical, sometimes they are unbeatable and others quite arguable and unfair.

Thanks to its small size, RFID tags can be placed under cover, in boxes, tickets, etc.
Texas Instruments Inc.

A clear example can be found in supermarkets. If you go to any shopping center in Euskal Herria, anyone can go out with a product that has bought and paid and start chistonar door detectors. This does not mean we have stolen something, but the cashier has badly removed or removed the RFID tag from the product. In fact, there are many products that have started to incorporate RFID in shopping malls, not only to report theft, but also for automatic product stocks, sales control or the availability of shelves and warehouses. Therefore, the RFID tag can replace the barcode system in the coming years, although for now it is somewhat more expensive.

In addition, the inclusion of the RFID tag on credit cards will allow us to make an automatic and lightweight payment through a detector without waiting queues. In Hong Kong, for example, on the Octopus card type, this system is now available. The European Union also intends to introduce RFID chips into the banknotes - rumors already say so -. This is apparently due to the counting, tracking and ease of payment of tickets. RFID is a huge system for this purpose. However, the system can be huge also to facilitate the work of thieves, through an RFID reader, since a thief can know at all times how much money a person has.

With RFID systems it is possible to conduct commercial research, track buyers and analyze consumer habits without customer consent.

Other applications of interest are intelligent traffic signals. According to forecasts, RFID chips will be installed in traffic signals and beacons in the coming years, and vehicles will have RFID readers. Readers will detect, understand and alert the driver by voice or holographic images projected onto the windshield.

Privacy in danger

The RFID system offers numerous practical advantages, but in some cases it can compromise privacy and freedom.
1. Siemens; 2-3. Texas Instruments Inc.

If one of the above themes seems taken from a science fiction book, it is no exception: vaccinations. The insertable RFID chips were initially designed for implantation in animals, but the possibility of incorporation into people is not excluded. Through them you could save medical records, avoid identity theft, control access to protected buildings or computers, etc.

The ethical legitimacy of these projects is not clear, but there is already in the market a chip that can be inserted in humans. A related curiosity: The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) started in 2004 a study to decide the approval of the use of RFID chips in hospitals. And that organization approved the first chips that can be incorporated into humans: Manufactured by VeriChip and with a frequency of 132.2 kHz.

It is not questioned that these uses can generate benefits, but the possibility of restricting individual freedoms and attacking privacy should not be ruled out. For example, in recent times digital passports are at the top. For that can be a very serious and noteworthy case, how it develops.

Very Chip. He was the first to receive human insertion permits. The photo clearly shows how small it is.
Very Chip Corp.

There are two main types of digital passport technologies: RFID and SmartCard. The latter must be inserted into a special reader to be able to read it, such as coin cards. That is, in addition to the reader, physical contact is necessary to read the chip and obtain the passport data.

However, using RFID allows remote reading of data without authorization or physical contact, only an RFID reader is required.

Specifically, USA and other states have chosen this second for digital passports. They have no technical advantages over SmartCard. However, privacy can be a big risk, and anyone who can benefit from this technology can commit theft or targeted attacks.

Therefore, the debates and boycotts that have been generated around this issue are not few. We are faced with a conflicting issue and full of doubts, we will have to see what will happen.

No general regulations
There is no international body that regulates the frequencies used for RFID. Therefore, each State can establish its own rules.
In the European case, for example, the ETSI (European Institute of Telecommunications and Standards) is in charge of regulating frequencies. However, before its use, each Government should approve them whenever they are not small, as they can be used without any license.
RFID system cancellation methods
Like all systems, this is not infallible either. There are several ways of resolution.
The most famous and 'most scientific' is the Faraday cage. The name was given by the inventor Michel Faraday, and is used to prevent waves from entering or leaving in an area. It's like a shield, and so, if we put the RFID tag in a Faraday cage, the waves it emits would hardly have strength, so they would be null.
Contrary to what is believed, the construction of a Faraday cage is nothing difficult. In fact, the coating of the RFID label with foil is enough to isolate its waves. However, the shield could be reinforced if it was inserted into a closed iron container.
The Faraday effect can be seen in different situations of everyday life. For example, in elevators or buildings with steel structure it is not possible to use mobile phones. Similarly, if you put your mobile phone in the microwave and close the door -- if the oven would isolate the waves properly -- even if you call, it should not signal.
There are other RFID cancellation systems, not as 'methodical' as the previous one, but very useful. One of them is the separation of the chip antenna and the other the break of the chip electronics by an overload, by a strong alternating electrical force, a powerful magnet or X-rays.
A curiosity: Tickets from the European Union already have RFID tags. To check, microwave a glass with a water ticket and turn on the oven for a minute. If you see a very small blackened square, the RFID chip breaks out. If you test, do it with a low value banknote -- quiet, but the ticket is complete. You also have to enter water, since it is not convenient to start the microwave in vacuum.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Garaizar Sagarminaga, P.
"Cyber Social Control"
http://www.e-ghost.deusto.es/
docs/2005/conferences/ gobelab-cibercontrol.sxi
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