RFID - A Flexible and Convenient Technology for More Advance Automatic Operations
adio-frequency identification (RFID) is the latest technology that uses radio waves to automatically identify people or objects. This is a flexible technology that is convenient, easy to use and well suited for automatic operation. An RFID tag is a microchip combined with an antenna in a compact package; the packaging is structured to allow the RFID tag to be attached to an object to be tracked. Also known as transponders, RFID tags are chips which are attached or may be inserted into products, animals and even people. 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. RFID tags come in a wide variety of shapes and sizes and can be categorized as either active or passive. The passive ones lack an independent power supply whilst the active one has its own power source of extensive range and more memory than passive tags.
These tags have tiny antennae that allow them to send a signal to an RFID reader or receiver. Actually a typical RFID system consists of an RFID tool (RFID tags) with data of an item, an antenna for transferring signals between the reader and device, a receiver that generates RF signals and a reader that collects RF transmissions from an RFID tool to be forwarded to a host system for its processing. There is also application specific software used in the system. The main purpose of a RFID reader is to decode the data encoded in the tag's integrated circuit (silicon chip) and pass it to the host computer for processing.
Because the RFID technology is reliable and has the capabilities to broadcast data over a large distance; nowadays many companies are using RFID tags for different purposes. RFIDtechnology is used mainly in payment systems, access controls and asset tracking. This technology is used for various purposes - among others to tag merchandise at stores, to prevent shoplifting, to tag prescriptions, over-the-counter medicines, and hospital products and to help combat the illegal trafficking of counterfeit pharmaceutical products. RFID technology provides a hands-free access control solution with many advantages over traditional access control badges and systems. Badge RFID can be read from much further distances than other traditional technologies and the embedded electronic information for each badge can be over-written repeatedly. One of the big advantages of RFID in badges is the ability to speed up the registration and entry process.
With RFID cards companies can spend less time and money on administration and more time providing products to the customer because RFID technology does not require contact or line-of-sight between the reader and the object to be identified; can function in harsh environments; enables multiple tags to be read simultaneously; and provides a high level of data integrity. RFID technology raises asset tracking to a new level. End users enjoy faster, seamless transactions that are more secure than currently used systems. Really a RFID card reader writer can be an asset for any individual or business seeking the most advance card technology for their access card needs.
