Aug. 13, 2008 -- When contributing editor Jeff Schaengold wrote that 700 MHz RFID was coming, and made it sound "all-powerful," Switchboard received the some confused, and even angry, responses. A reader wrote the following questions, presented as part of this interview series. We welcome your thoughts here.
700 MHz vs WiMax, and RFID : RFIDSB TradeMart
Do I understand correctly that RFID tags, if they go to the 700 MHz, which may be on cars or ID documents, will be able to read via a cell phone tower?
SCHAENGOLD: First, we should address the two primary types of pure play RFID devices, passive and active. Both device types 'backscatter' to a transmitter/receiver (reader) which means that they both need to be within relative proximity for 700MHz and 900MHz.
The difference between 700MHz and 900MHz for RFID passive and active devices is that with 700MHz we overcome a number of issues:
Auto toll active RFID has an acceptable range, but issues such as the metal UV shielding on some vehicles inhibit the 'backscatter.' Also, many of us don't know this but the RFID read rate on auto toll is not 100%, or close to 100%. That is why toll collection systems utilize License Plate Reader technology to identify the vehicles that are not validated by RFID. 700MHz will be read through metalized windshields and even through the roof of the vehicle. No longer will you need the RFID device to be attached to the windshield.
What about our privacy with 'all-encompassing' RFID?
SCHAENGOLD: ID documents present a good benefit and a problem consequence. ePassports can be read at longer ranges and through metal. The problem is that we don't want to read ePassports at longer ranges and we don't want to read through metal. We want ePassports to be 'very near field' and we want the RF portion of the RFID to be dormant when the passport is closed. We do that by using the ePassport cover as a metalized shield.
On the other hand, in ID for legal documents, evidence, security, etc., 700 MHz will benefit significantly. The range will improve which will increase adaptation as well as our enhanced ability to read stacked RFID documents that we can't easily do with 900 MHz. We can also use locating capability with 700MHz for documents that we can't easily do today with 900MHz.
The "tower" would be able to receive RFID tag transmissions?
SCHAENGOLD: As to the cell tower, this architecture of 700MHz is for the 'reader' connectivity and not for the device, when it comes to pure play RFID. Today, with 900MHz cell technology you need a cell tower every mile or two.
This is extremely expensive infrastructure. With 700 MHz you need a cell tower ever 50-100 miles, very much like a TV tower. It's ironic that I've always used FM and AM radio as examples. With AM radio you can receive signal hundreds of miles and sometimes thousands of miles away; and FM is relatively a 100-200 mile range. Imagine that 900 MHz is FM radio and 700 MHz is AM radio. What a difference in range. . .
What will safeguard against this being abused by someone?
SCHAENGOLD: That is really not a technology matter. It is really more of a use matter.
The intent of RFID is to simply assign a unique identifier to an artifact, much like a social security number to human in the USA. RFID is not supposed to be used for data storage, just like a nine digit social security number is not supposed to store any more information. As long as smart people use the technology as intended, there is not substantive threat of abuse from pure RFID, just as there is no substantive threat from a social security number in itself.
Without a person name, address, and date of birth associated to a social security number, very little benefit can be derived from attempting to abuse a randomly generated nine digit number. At the same time, if one is to steal the U.S. mail of someone that includes a credit card statement and some other documents with the information described, than identify theft will occur. In RFID, even if a bad person can read the ID of something, it's meaningless unless it's associated to other relative information.
Remember that 15 years ago cell phone numbers were hacked and stolen everyday around the world and eventually the phone companies built a secured infrastructure to minimize those events. The same will happen with RFID.
How does this affect RFID infrastructure?
SCHAENGOLD: How about a network of readers, that instead of ethernet or TCP/IP, they have built in WiMax or 3G/4G/EDGE/GPRS? This means the reader, stationary or mobile, can communicate via the wireless cell network instead of a WAN. Huge difference.
For the new generation of RFID devices (tags) that are 'active' such as ocean containers, trucks, cabs, hazardous waste, children commuting to school, soldiers in the field, etc., the RFID tag is actually a cell phone on a chip. A tiny chip attached to a batter/antenna the size of your smallest fingernail, that basically connects to the 700 MHz cell system without an RFID reader. I realize this is a bit forwarding looking, but in technology forward is only the shelf life of Cheerios cereal. There is a point in the next three years where RFID will not require an RFID reader with 700 MHz.
I understand you say that 700 MHz has a longer range than 900 MHz; but my additional question is with 700 MHz. What would be the range for reception?
SCHAENGOLD: For the next three years, the range of 700 MHz in relation to tags and devices will be the same as they are for 900 MHz. For readers connected to 3G/4G/EDGE/GPRS the range will increase from 1-2 miles to 50-100 miles connectivity of readers to wireless infrastructure.
As devices are designed as active devices as Cell Phone on a Chip (CPOC), the range for RFID active devices will increase from a 100 yards max range to 100 miles max range.
In the near future, I will draft our vision of how 700MHz will be impacted by the open access movement of wireless phone companies, which means that any approved device can function on a wireless cell network and not just the phone handsets and wireless cards purchased through the wireless carrier. I will also address how 700 MHz will transform RFID from an architecture of billions of tags and millions of RFID readers, to billions of devices without any RFID readers. Yes, zero RFID readers.
