What is an RFID tag?
RFID tags consist of an integrated circuit (IC) attached to an antenna-typically a small coil of wires-plus some protective packaging (like a plastic card) as determined by the application requirements. RFID tags can come in many forms and sizes. Some can be as small as a grain of rice. Data is stored in the IC and transmitted through the antenna to a reader. RFID tags are either “passive” (no battery) or “active” (self-powered by a battery). Tags also can be read-only (stored data can be read but not changed), read/write (stored data can be altered or re-written), or a combination, in which some data is permanently stored while other memory is left accessible for later encoding and updates.
An RFID tag is a microchip pooled in with an antenna in a compacted enclose; the packaging is planned to permit the RFID tag to be attached to a thing to be tracked. RFID tags can be very diminutive like the dimension of a large rice grain. Others may be the size of a little paperback book. The tinier an RFID tag is, the better. Some tags can be as small as 1/3 of a millimeter across. One can notice and must have seen such tiny RFID tags while out shopping in a grocery store attached to a food packet or hidden between the pages of a book in a bookstore or tagged to a pair of jeans. These RFID tags have been placed there with the purpose of preventing theft and reducing cases of shoplifting. So, if a miscreant thinks of pocketing a valuable item, he will not get past the security door as the tag will connect to the tracker and will alert the shop by beeping the alarm system. Such applications have also made even government departments interested in RFID tags. On the whole there are two
Radio frequency identification (RFID) tags are used in a wide range of applications such as: identifying animals, tracking goods through the supply chain, tracking assets such as gas bottles and beer kegs, and controlling access into buildings. RFID tags include a chip that typically stores a static number (an ID) and an antenna that enables the chip to transmit the stored number to a reader. Some RFID tags contain read/write memory to store dynamic data. When the tag comes within range of the appropriate RF reader, the tag is powered by the reader’s RF field and transmits its ID to the reader. RFID tags are simple, low-cost and commonly disposable, although this is not always the case such as reusable laundry tags. There is little to no security on the RFID tag or during communication with the reader. Any reader using the appropriate RF frequency (low frequency: 125/134 KHz; high frequency: 13.56 MHz; and ultra-high frequency: 900MHz) and protocol can get the RFID tag to communicate i
RFID tags consist of an integrated circuit (IC) attached to an antenna—typically a small coil of wires—plus some protective packaging (like a plastic card) as determined by the application requirements. Tags also sometimes are called “transponders,” and sometimes they are called “inlays,” although technically an inlay is a tag mounted on a substrate that is ready to be converted into a smart label. RFID tags can come in many forms and sizes. Some can be as small as a grain of rice. Data is stored in the IC and transmitted through the antenna to a reader. RFID tags are either “passive” (no battery) or “active” (self-powered by a battery). Tags also can be read-only (stored data can be read but not changed), read/write (stored data can be altered or rewritten), or a combination, in which some data is permanently stored while other memory is left accessible for later encoding and updates.
