Reader Juan Carlos Ramirez sent me a link to Time magazine’s Best Inventions of 2008, noting that two included the use of radio frequency identification.
One invention cited was Montreal’s Public Bike System, which employs RFID to track bikes that can be rented around the city from modular bike-rack stations.
The other was The Internet Of Things, which doesn’t necessarily involve RFID. The IP for Smart Objects Alliance (IPSO), cited in the article, promotes the use of IP addresses, rather than Electronic Product Codes (EPCs), to track objects. But the concept of the Internet of Things certainly emerged from the idea of linking objects to the Internet by embedding an RFID tag in them.
Alas, Time‘s recently released Best Invention list for 2009 didn’t include any RFID-related products.
Did the editors of Time not see the TalkingPlug? Did they miss the interactive wine kiosks and the RFID-enabled robotic guide dog?
Wait till next year!
Mark Roberti is the founder and editor of RFID Journal. If you would like to comment on this article, click on the link below. To read more of Mark’s opinions, visit the RFID Journal Blog or click here.