Are vibration and solar energies viable power sources? And how widely have they been deployed? —Shabana ——— Shabana, The sole source of energy for a passive tag is RF energy from a reader antenna. The definition of a passive tag is a tag with no power source of its...
Would this type of monitoring be doable in a hospital setting? And how much would tags cost? —Greg ——— Dear Greg, Tracking patients and workers within a hospital's psychiatric ward is not only doable—it's being done. Rockhampton Base Hospital, in Queensland,...
What is required to make this possible? —Name withheld ——— To answer your question, I reached out to Sanjiv Dua of training and consulting firm RFID4U. He explained that different interrogators have different commands, and provided this C API command for Motorola...
If not, what type of system would be required? —Name withheld ——— It really depends on your definition of "close-range." Passive high-frequency (HF) systems based on the ISO 14443 standards are designed for very short-range communication (only a few inches). This...
Can I trace a file's movements from one person to another, or from one department to another? And what is the reliability of such a system, given the potential for interference? —Name withheld ——— Radio frequency identification is often used for file management. We...
Would such an application of the technology be feasible? —Name withheld ——— That's a difficult question to answer without knowing the type of energy usage to which you refer. I will say that I am unaware of any sensor designed specifically to monitor energy usage....
What's your prediction for how the technology will develop in the future? —Name withheld ——— I predict that readers will come with racing stripes, mag wheels and better sound systems. Just kidding. Tags will likely become smaller and less expensive, due to rising...
Most Google searches come back with articles from 2004. —Name withheld ——— Google actually went out of business in 2004, and has not been updated since then. Just kidding, of course. I don't know what you are searching for on Google, but all of our articles can be...
Are they expensive? —Name withheld ——— It depends. Most tollway systems employ active RFID transponders. From what I have heard from the government entities controlling these roads, tags cost around $25 apiece. Some companies have introduced passive tags that cost a...
I don't understand how this is done. —Name withheld ——— The answer depends on the specific reader employed. Some companies, particularly those offering active RFID-based real-time location systems (RTLS), have complete systems enabling software and a reader to...
I'm interested in purchasing tags and interrogators, and would like to have approximately 20 to 30 people within a room, each with a passive tag. The room would be about 30 feet in length, 9 feet in width and 8 feet in height, and the tags would be located within a...
Is this possible? And if not, what are some alternatives? —Jose ——— Jose, Sewn in? No. Can an RFID tag be baked into the rubber during the manufacturing process? I believe so, yes. Michelin tested tags in tires several years ago (see Michelin Embeds RFID Tags in...