Where might I find active or battery-assisted tags that are really small—say, 1.5 inches in diameter?
—Name withheld
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There are a wide variety of active tags on the market, and they are getting progressively smaller and thinner. Axcess International has created a small ultrahigh-frequency (UHF) RFID chip with built-in digital input-output (IO) and analog-to-digital conversion (ADC) to connect with sensors. The company’s Enterprise Dot chip operates as both an active and passive tag, and the IO port allows for greater options for data storage and sensor input (see New Axcess Chip Can Be Active or Operate as Passive Gen 2).
PowerID manufactures battery-assisted RFID labels that use thin-film batteries to boost the read range of passive tags. These labels measure approximately 80 millimeters by 65 millimeters by 3.5 millimeters (3.1 inches by 2.6 inches by 0.1 inch). Orizin Technologies, headquartered in Bangalore, India, offers a UHF tag designed for tracking assets over long ranges. It measures 26 millimeters by 23 millimeters by 7.3 millimeters (1 inch by 0.9 inch by 0.3 inch). The manufacturer of RFID hardware and software says the new tag is priced at $8 apiece for orders of more than 5,000 in quantity.
There are others as well.
—Mark Roberti, Editor, RFID Journal