RFID, Current Status, Challenges, and Opportunities

Yen-Hung Chen, Ph.D.

Computer Science and Information Engineering / International College Ming-Chuan University

A Scene from Mission Impossible (1996)

… The federal agent in charge of the most secrete FBI database was tagged with a piece of fabric less than an eighth of an inch square. The tag showed where he was in the building and allowed perpetrators (led by Tom Cruise in the movie) to know when to penetrate the heavily-guarded security system to get the data file, the NOC-list, a list of all FBI undercover agents working around the world. …

Another Scene from Demolition Man (1993)

… The criminal Simon Phoenix (played by Wesley Snipes in the movie) escaped from the San Angeles cryogenic prison. Signaled by the ID chips and sensors embedded in the vehicle taken by the criminal and planted to the forearms of security personals and staffs, the city-wide security system was able to quickly locate the criminal in the city and, identify and access the status of the deaths and injuries of the security personals and staffs (remotely) caused by the escapee. …

What is RFID?

    Radio Frequency Identification Device Holds a small amount of unique data – a serial number or other unique attribute of the item The data can be read from a distance – no contact or even line of sight necessary Enables individual items – down to the proverbial “can of beans” to be individually tracked from manufacture to consumption!

RFID Market

     10 millions in 2002.

91.5 millions in 2003.

3.1 billions (1.3 billions for retail alone) in 2008.

Minimum growth rate of 23% annually.

IDC (Jan. 2004), The Freedonia Group (Dec. 2003), Insight Research (Dec. 2003), ABI (Jul. 2003).

RFID Tag Attributes

Tag Power Source Tag Battery Availability of power Required signal strength to Tag Range Multi-tag reading Data Storage Active RFID Internal to tag Yes Continuous Very Low Passive RFID Energy transferred using RF from reader No Only in field of reader Very High Up to 100m 1000’s of tags recognized – up to 100mph Up to 3-5m, usually less Few hundred within 3m of reader Up to 128Kb or read/write with sophisticated search and access Up to 2Kb of read/write

Passive RFID Tags

  “Traditional” tags used in retail security applications    Tag can be programmed at manufacture or on installation Tag is powered by the high power electromagnetic field generated by the antennas – usually in doorways The field allows the chip/antenna to reflect back an extremely weak signal containing the data These passive tags form the basis of the Auto-ID designs, and, if manufactured in billions, will come down in price from $0.97 to $0.05 in the next 2 years.

Active Tags

    Battery Powered tags      Have much greater range – 100m Hold much more information – Kbytes Can integrate sensing technology  Temperature, GPS Can signal at defined time Multiple tags can be recorded at once Used for higher value items    Shipping containers Babies Electronic assets Cost between $20 and $40 per item Life between 2 – 4 years

A Brief History – An Internet of Things

   Not a new technology.

Identifying enemy war planes since the World War II and during the Gulf war.

Civilian applications: highway toll tags, the control of paroled criminals, the prevention of missing kids, and others.

A Brief History – An Internet of Things

     Auto-ID Center, 1999.

Version 1.0, Sept. 2003.

Wal-Mart, DoD, Metro, 2003.

Auto-ID Lab, Oct. 2003.

EPCglobal, Oct. 2003.

Auto-ID Center (1999)

   A partnership of almost 100 global companies and five research universities:       the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in the US, the University of Cambridge in the UK, the University of Adelaide in Australia, the Keio University in Japan, and the University of St. Gallen in Switzerland.

(The Fudan University in China, the sixth research university in August 2003) Goal: Apply the technology to objects in our daily lives so computers would be able to “see” the identities of these objects and to form an "Internet of things”.

Mission: Develop the infrastructure and building blocks of this special internet and to develop its future standards.

Wal-Mart, Metro (2003)

   Request their major biggest suppliers to apply RFID tags to merchandise pallets going to their distribution centers. Metro (Dr. Hans-Joachim Körber, chairman and CEO; Zygmunt Mierdorf, CIO)   Store testing in Reinhold, Germany since April, 2003: intelligent scale, self-scanning shopping cart, information station. Begin the installation of intelligent scale and self-scanning shopping cart in all stores in Apr. 2004.

 Major supplier compliance by Nov. 2004.

Wal-Mart (H. Lee Scott, CEO; Linda Dillman, CIO)  Major supplier compliance by Jan. 2005 (Expect 25%-36% of full compliance).

 All supplier compliance by Dec. 2006.

EPCglobal (2003)

     Converted from Auto-ID Center on Oct. 23, 2003. A neutral, not-for-profit standards organization and a joint venture between EAN International and the Uniform Code Council (UCC).

Mission:    Develop and oversee the standards of electronic product codes (EPC) by using the RFID technology, Provide registry service of the codes, and Coordinate with International Standards Organization (ISO) for their review and ratification.

Implementation Task Force (ITF): Board of Directors, Operating Committee, User Action Group, Technical Steering Committee, and Technical Action Groups.

The “Internet of Things” proposed by the Auto-ID Center is now called the EPCglobal Network.

RFID 研發與應用

產業聯盟 Mar. 17, 2004    3 月 17 日工研院系統中心假台北國際會議中心 ，舉辦「 RFID 研發與應用 產業聯盟」成立大會 。 RFID 策略聯盟結合國 內 79 家優秀業者，包括大 同、特力、光寶、精業、慶康等 … 公司 ，其中 國際廠商 Sun Microsystems, HP 及 Itochu/Hitachi 均在名單之列。共計有 66 家廠商 加入。 下設六個事業群負責研發及應用兩大任務。以 強化國 內 RFID 相關 產品設計、開發、量產系統 應用能力為宗旨。將結合 產官學研各界的能量 ，共同推動國 內 RFID 產業。

RFID 研發與應用

產業聯盟

EPCglobal Network

    Introduction Basic elements How does it work?

Business applications

Introduction

     EPC: Electronic Product Code Provide information about the location of items, the history of items, and the number of items in a supply-chain. A new technology to identify, track, and manage products in a supply chain.

Revolutionizing the way we manufacture, sell, and buy products in the future.

Internet of Things.

Basic Elements

     EPC EPC tags and readers Savant Object Name Service (ONS) Physical Markup Language (PML)

Electronic Product Code (EPC)

    Next generation of product identification.

 Similar to the U.P.C. (Universal Product Code) or bar code.

Adopt the basic structures of the Global Trade Item Number (GTIN).

 GTIN, an umbrella group under which all existing bar codes fall and supported by the Uniform Code Council and EAN International, the two main bodies that oversee international bar code standards. Can associate an infinite amount of dynamic data over the EPCglobal Network.

Divided into numbers that identify the manufacturer, product, version and serial number.

EPC Code

     Two standards: 64 and 96 bits.

 e.g. 613.23000.123456.123456789 (96 bits) Header (8 bits), Version number EPC Manager (34 bits), Originator of EPC (product manufacturer), up to 268 million companies, e.g., the Coca-Cola Company.

Object Class (20 Bits), Product type or SKU, up to 16 millions per company, e.g., Diet Coke 330 ml can, US.

Serial Number (34 Bits), Product item, up to 68 millions per class, e.g., a specific 330 ml can of Diet Coke .

EPC Tags and Readers

  EPC is stored on a special tag, generally referred as RFID tag or Smart Label.

 The tags are applied to products during the manufacturing process like bar codes.

The readers “communicate” to the tags by sending radio waves and then pass the EPC and possibly other data to a program called Savant running on a computer.

Savant

     Formulate production information request as a query.

Send the request to the Object Name Service (ONS), which acts like a yellow page directory, to retrieve the network address of a product information server.

Forward the request to the product information server.

The program can run on different computers distributed throughout an organization. Possible tasks include: data smoothing, reader coordination, data forwarding, data storage, and task management.

Object Name Service (ONS)

   Similar to the Domain Name Service (DNS) in the computer network.

Provide the network address service of product information. Built-in redundancies to avoid the crash of a product information server in the network.

Physical Markup Language (PML)

   A “language” for describing physical objects such as products.

Based on the widely accepted eXtensible Markup Language (XML).

Include data that changes constantly (dynamic data) and data that changes over time (temporal data).   Dynamic data: temperature of a shipment of fruit, or vibration levels from a machine. Temporal data: an object's location.

Supply Chain – Global Vision

Business Applications

    Manufacturing, Logistics, and Material Handling Inventory Tracking and Management Safety and Security Customer Service

Manufacturing, Logistics, and Material Handling

     Instant identification of a shipping container plus all of the items inside.

Incoming pallets or cartons can be routed automatically for cross docking or delivery directly to the manufacturing and customer sites.

During assembly processes, items can be routed and recorded for their movements.

For shipping, packers can quickly locate and aggregate all the items needed to complete an order. Pharmaceutical companies can use RFID to ensure medicines are put into correctly labeled packages.

Inventory Tracking and Management

  Track work-in-process and finished goods inventory.

    Assists the discovery of sought items, misfiled materials, unreturned containers, and expired products for improved warehouse operations.

Enable shippers to lower their material costs.

Provide an audit trail that can be used to bill customers if materials are not returned.

Track medication dispensing, laboratory samples, and blood bags in hospitals. Automatic replenishment of inventory.

 When an item is removed from a shelf or when inventory falls below safety stock levels, a replenishment notice can be sent out automatically.

Safety and Security

   Hands-free access to secured buildings and safeguards corporate properties or amusement parks.

    Ensure only authorized personnel are admitted to authorized facilities.

Alzheimer’s disease patients can be prevented from wandering out of a medical facility.

For Pediatrics, only staff or parents may be permitted to check out infants or children.

Children separated from their groups or parents in amusement parks or public facilities can be located easily.

Detection of counterfeit products and medicine and provides anti shoplifting protection and theft deterrence on retail merchandises, computers, furniture, files, library books, videos, CDs, and other objects.

Talking prescription bottles to ensure that patients take the correct medication by “speaking” the drug contents, dosage instructions, and drug interaction warnings to the patients with the help of a reader and text-to-speech conversion software (especially helpful for blind and vision-impaired people).

Cashless Payment

  Promotes quicker service while keeping account information confidential.

   Prepay and load the monetary value onto RFID tags or wristbands and recharge the tags or wristband after the stored value has been depleted.

Pay-at-pump, Pay-at-booth.

Prepaid passenger fare cards for public transit.

Guest identification cards / keys for cashless payment, as a room key, and for access control to the health clubs and other facilities at hotels, restaurants, and entertainment facilities.

Customer Service

   Speedy check in, check out, and browsing.

 books/videos, and garments in desired style, size, and color.

Product information.

Returns and warranty repairs.

 Lifetime tracking and product authentication.

Business Opportunities

        RFID Tag and Reader Manufacturing RFID Printer RFID Test Labs, DCs, Consulting Product Plug-And-Play RFID Network Devices Smart RFID Devices / PDAs Secured RFID Protocols RFID Products Capable of Creating New Market and Demand

Applications of Smart RFID Devices / PDAs

         Automatic routing and transportation Automatic inventory tracking and re-ordering Quality management Flexible and cheaper NC / CNC machining Optimal packing Automatic service rate adjustment Smart appliances Consumer-sensitive marketing RFID with sensors

Business Risks

         Tag availability and cost.

Privacy.

Industrial sectors.

Open source technology.

Competition and cost reduction.

Technology support and maturity.

Priority management.

Limited self-awareness.

Corporate merger and purchase.

      

Business Challenges

Low cost and flexible RFID manufacturing.

Smart and secured RFID technology and standards.

RFID copyrights and patents.

Innovation with steady cash flow and market growth.

Cope with possible open source development for some applications involving programming.

Effective business strategy to manage RFID opportunities by considering our ability in terms of knowledge, technology, resource, and people.

Need national and global experts to outline the rules for RFID applications involving privacy.

Near-Term Business Opportunities and Challenges

        RFID is an open technology. No significant cost will be needed to manufacture RFID tags initially. RFID standards already exists. The tags made will be widely acceptable without great risk.

Only the initial successful sales of RFID tags will open up future market for RFID devices.

Future growth of the business is strengthened by the subsequent innovations in the following areas: Smart RFID devices.

Secured RFID tags.

Secured and smart RFID devices.

RFID patents and applications.

RFID Taiwan

Timeline

    2003, 經濟部技術處為國 內科技 研發推動之火 車頭，透過工研院系統中心推動高頻 RFID 的 研發計畫，研發 內容包括 IC 晶片、天線、讀取 機 (Reader) 等重要技術。 2004, 完成 IC 晶片開發。 2005, 上半年將有國 產之高頻 RFID Tag 進軍市 場。 後續則將研發讀取機以及 RFID 與其他感應器 (Sensor) 結合之研究計畫，以使 RFID 能多樣化 地應用在各方面。

ITRI RFID Research Objectives

Market Analysis Resources

    IDC Forecasts Bubble, Burst, Boom. RFID Journal, Jan. 12, 2004.

Smart Labels Set to Soar. RFID Journal, Dec. 23, 2003.

Estimating RFID's Pace of Adoption. RFID Journal, Dec. 5, 2003.

ABI: RFID Market Poised for Growth. RFID Journal, Jul. 18, 2003.

Web Resources

            Auto-ID Center. http://archive.epcglobalinc.org

Auto-ID Labs. http://www.autoidlabs.org

Auto-ID Labs in China. http://www.autoidcenter.cn

EPCglobal. http:// www.epcglobalinc.org

RFID Journal. http://www.rfidjournal.com

RFID: The next generation of AIDC. Technical white paper, Zebra Technologies, 2003.

Auto ID Development, Sun Microsystems. http://java.sun.com/developer/technicalArticles/Ecommerce/rfid/index.

html TI RFID solutions. http://www.ti.com/tiris/default.htm

rfidXchange. A web site with comprehensive RFID info. http://www.rfidexchange.com

RFID Talk. RFID web-based newsgroup. http://www.rfidtalk.com

工業技術研究院 , 系統技術組 . http://www.cast.itri.org.tw/research/aviation.htm

物流 RFID 嵌入物流載具容器發展計畫 . http://ld.itri.org.tw/sub1.htm

Discussion

   Opportunities and priorities to MCU / Taiwan   RFID Tag and Reader Manufacturing RFID Printer  RFID Test Labs, DCs, Consulting Roles of MCU / Taiwan  (Local) leading research university?

 Technology leader or follower?

Q&A