Radio Frequency Barcodes
History
Traditionally, companies have used standard paper barcodes in conjunction with information databases to track inventory and monitor product movement. By tracking incoming and outgoing product, barcodes form an easy means of maximizing the overall efficiency of a business. Barcodes do however have certain limitations. Barcode scanning is dependent on the orientation of the barcode with the horizontal laser scanner and therefore the overall speed of the process becomes a function of the speed at which the individual can orient and then scan. This minor limitation may be a soon be resolved as Radio-Frequency Identification (RFID) technology maximizes the potential for efficient and quick product management in the form of electronic barcodes. Radio-Frequency Identification is not a new technology but has become realistic through recent advancements.
Key Players
A small handful of companies inside and outside the United States are developing this new technology. A company called RF-ID.Com specializes in electronic barcodes and transponders for the management of everything from automobiles to cattle, beer kegs, and packages. While another, RF Ideas Inc. has teamed up with such companies as Motorola and Microsoft to manufacture a form of proximity activated identification or AIR ID as a form of added security for Windows NT systems. These companies and others have been testing RF-ID technology throughout Europe for quite some time in product test runs.
Technology
Different companies offer a variety of products as solutions to different customer needs. "The core of any RF-ID system is the ‘Tag’ or ‘Transponder’ which can be attached to or embedded within objects." (1) RF-ID’s come in all shapes and sizes, from little glass transponder capsules to being placed in between layers of paper or plastic to form inexpensive stickers for disposable use.
But all of the Radio-Frequency Identification technology relies on the same principle, wireless communication between a RF-ID or transponder and the RF Module of a reader. "The data collected from an RF-ID can either be sent directly to a host computer through standard interfaces, or it can be stored in a portable reader and later uploaded to the computer for data processing." (1) When a transponder comes within range of a reader it uses energy collected from a RF wave that is stored in a capacitor to broadcast its own answering message which is received by the reader. (1)
Many of the new transponders feature read/write updating so that information can be read and uploaded on the fly.
How far is going too far? Imagine a world where an individual’s complete and accurate medical history can be accessed and updated by simply scanning a microchip or radio frequency identification device (RFID) that is implanted into the body. Envision a patient arriving at point-of-care; the chip that is embedding into the patient’s body would be scanned to upload the patients’ health information into the providers’ health information system (HIS). During this encounter, new information would be stored in the HIS. When the patient is discharged, the patient’s up-to-date health information would be uploaded from the HIS to the patients’ microchip. Implanting an electronic health record into every U.S. citizen has its pros and cons; the question contemplated is “We Can But Should We”?
Kate Chopin was a Victorian writer; whose writing manifests her life experiences. She was not happy with the principles of the time, because women had fewer rights, and they were not considered equal to men. Afraid of segregation from society, people lived in a hypocritical world full of lies; moreover, Kate Chopin was not afraid of segregation, and used her writing as a weapon against oppression of the soul. Marriage was an oppressor to Chopin, she had been a victim of this institution. Being a victim of marriage, Chopin's "Story of an Hour," is an expression of her believe that, marriage is an institution that oppresses, represses, and is a source of discontent among human beings.
The microchip is a tiny transponder the size of a grain of uncooked rice. The chip is a permanent radio-frequency identification (RFID) chip implanted under the dog's skin that can be read by a chip scanner or wand. Implantation is done with an injector that places the chip under the loose skin over the dog's shoulder. This is a quick and easy process that can be done by all veterinarians provided they have the right technology to do so. The chip identification number is stored in a tiny transponder that can be read through the dog's skin by a scanner emitting low-frequency radio waves (Woolf 1). The frequency is picked up by a tiny antenna in the transponder, and the number is retrieved, decoded, and displayed in the scanner readout window. The radio waves use a frequency much lower than AM broadcast stations use, and they must be approved by the Federal Communications Commission before they can be marketed (Woolf 1). The chip, antenna, and capacitor are encased in a tiny glass tube. The tube is composed of soda lime glass, which is known for compatibility with living tissue. The glass is hermetically sealed to keep moisture out.
Marriage can be seen as a subtle form of oppression, like many things which are dictated by social expectations. In Kate Chopin’s The Story of An Hour, Louise Mallard finds herself in distress due to the event of her husband’s death that makes her question who she is as a person. The author cleverly uses this event to create the right atmosphere for Mrs. Mallard to fight against her own mind. As the short story progresses, we see that Mrs. Mallard moves forward with her new life and finds peace in her decision to live for herself. This shows that marriage too is another chain that holds oneself back. Not wanting to admit this to herself, Louise
RFID, which is radio frequency identification, uses tiny tags that contain a processor and an antenna and can communicate with a detecting device. RFID is intended to have many applications with supply chain and inventory control to be the drivers of utilization. RFID has been around for a long time. During World War II, RFIDs were used to identify friendly aircraft. Today, they are used in wireless systems, for example, the E-Z passes you see on the turnpikes. The major problem until recently has been cost for RFIDs. Tags have been at a cost of 50 cents, which makes it hard to utilize or really unusable for low priced items. A company based out of California called Alien Technology has invented tags for less than 10 cents a piece on large mass runs. The major benefit expected from RFID is its potential for revolutionizing the supply chain management, but RFID could have many applications, ranging from payment collections on highways, to finding lost kids in amusement parks, to preventing cell phones from being stolen.
Louise Mallard finds personal strength in her husband's death, ready to face the world as a whole person "She breathed a quick prayer that life might be long. It was only yesterday (prior to her husband's death) she had thought with a shudder that life might be long." The strength conveyed in the image of Louise carrying "herself unwittingly like a goddess of Victory" is unmistakable. However, the irony that her husband lives, and therefore, she cannot, conveys the limited options socially acceptable for women. Once Louise Mallard recognizes her desire to "live for herself," and the impossibility of doing so within the bounds of her marriage, her heart will not allow her to turn back.
Based on common law and precedent, the English law of contract has been formulated and developed over a number of years with it’s primary purpose to provide a regulated framework within which individuals can contract freely. In order to ensure a contract is enforceable there are certain elements which must be satisfied, one of which is the doctrine of consideration. Lord Denning famously professed; “the doctrine of consideration is too firmly fixed to be overthrown by a side wind” . This is a crucial indication that consideration has long been regarded as the cardinal ‘badge of enforceability’ in the formulation and variation of contracts in English common law.
Wolinsky, H. (2006, October). Tagging products and people. espite much controversy; radiofrequency identification chips have great potential in healthcare. Science and
Radio frequency identification (RFID) is a computerized ID innovation that uses radio recurrence waves to exchange information between an onlooker and things that have RFID gadgets, or tags, joined. The tags hold a microchip and receiving wire, and work at universally distinguished standard frequencies. Barcodes are much smaller, lighter and easier than RFID but RFID offers significant advantages. One major advantage of RFID is that the innovation doesn't oblige any observable pathway the tags could be perused as long as they are inside the range of the spectator, whereas in barcodes in order to read the barcode the barcode scanner should close around 10-15 fts. In RFID data, for example, part and serial numbers, assembling dates and support history is put away on the tags and catches which help in maintenance of equipments. RFID technology as high value for asset management and inventory systems
...egaining her husband and all of the loss of freedom her marriage entails. The line establishes that Louise's heart condition is more of a metaphor for her emotional state than a medical reality.” (Koloski) It is ironic that she accepts the death of her husband and is joyous and free, and then he ends up being alive after she walks out of the room with a sense of power. The ending of The Story of an hour by Kate Chopin implies that maybe the only true resolution of conflict is in death.
In Kate Chopin's "Story of an Hour" the author portrays patriarchal oppression in the institution of marriage by telling the story of one fateful hour in the life of a married woman. Analyzing the work through feminist criticism, one can see the implications of masculine discourse.
RFID is in use all around us. If you have ever chipped your pet with an ID tag, used EZPass through a toll booth, or paid for gas using SpeedPass, you've used RFID. In addition, RFID is increasingly used with biometric technologies for security.
"The hype around open-loop, supply chain applications four or five years ago created an awareness of RFID," says Chris Schaefer, director of RFID product marketing at Motorola Enterprise Mobility. "This awareness, over time, has led companies to consider what RFID can do within their own four walls, with a closed-loop RFID application." According to Schaefer, IT asset management is one way in which companies are using closed-loop RFID. "Items such as company laptops and storage tapes are not only expensive, but can contain sensitive information the company needs to protect," says Schaefer. Rather than using spreadsheets or user logs to track this equipment, a company can deploy RFID to do so. Using RFID in this instance is a more secure way of tracing where equipment is and who has been using it, which can save money on lost equipment and keep sensitive data more secure.
RFID has taken strides from being a far off solution to becoming a mainstream application that helps speed the handling of manufactured goods and materials. RFID is an identification and tracking tool for a product using radio waves. It uses a microchip and a printed antenna that can be then packaged in several different forms such as a label or embedded between layers of a carton. These labels are then used to identify the manufacturer, product category and the RFID enables this identification from a distance and unlike earlier bar-code technology, it does so without requiring a line of sight. (Finkelzeller)
As you are well aware by now the world has become increasingly technology oriented. Every day we use technology in one way or another. Whether it be simply checking email or being able to turn our entire house on from the simple push of a button on our smart phone. Whether we like it or not, technology is there. One piece of technology that seems to be gaining attention and garnering more research is Radio Frequency Identification or RFID. Radio Frequency Identification is a form of wireless media where messaging and data are broadcast through the air. It is radio transmission that uses an RFID tag, RFID reader, and back-end system in order to communicate back and forth and requires no line of sight. As simple as it may sound, this technology has its fair share of complications and the security issues that have presented themselves are at the forefront of this expanding technology.