To anyone who is knowledgable about RFID and it's history

[bori]

So I'm doing a presentation this coming Wednesday with some group members, and I've decided to take on a quick overview of the history of RFID. Now I only have about 5-7 minutes to present (as we have 5 people in the group) but I made about 6 slides to talk about it.

I just need help with verification and any input of anything I could change or add.

1st Slide

What I basically talk about here is that the idea of RFID really started in the 1930s during WW2. In 1935, Robert Watson developed the radar system for the British, which really gave them a huge edge over the Germans during the Battle of Britain, as they knew in advance when the enemy aircrafts were coming into territory. But at that time, there was not really a sure way to distinguish enemy aircrafts from friendly ones

2nd Slide

I then start this slide by saying that Germans eventually discovered that by having the pilots roll their planes when they were approaching the base, then that radio signal that was reflected back to the radar station would change, and this would actually say that a friendly aircraft was coming in. But this was really a crude way in identifying aircrafts at htis point

In 1939, the British under Watson, developed what was called the IFF, or Identify Friend-or-Foe system, in which a transponder was placed inside the plane. When that plane approached the base, the signal that was sent from the radar station to that transponder would activate it, and that transponder would broadcast a signal back saying that it was a friendly plane.

Next bullet, I mention the guy Leon Theremin, who developed an espionage tool for the Soviets in 1945. It would take incoming sound waves which would vibrate the diaphragm inside which would alter the shape of the resonator, and this would ultimately modulate the radio signal that would be sent out. This was really considered a predecessor RFID unit because although not used for identification, it would be energized and activated by outside wave energy (the sound waves).

Slide 3

Here I just mention a couple patents in the 1970s by two guys. The first guy's name is Mario Cardullo and in 1973, developed the first RFID unit with 16-bit memory. With this memory he was able to store data and broadcast that to readers. And this idea was also used by Charles Walton in the same year where he received a patent for developing an RFID unit that was used for unlocking a door without key. An identification number was stored within the tag of the RFID unit, and if the reader made a match of the ID, then the door would unlock. Walton is really considered the "Father of RFID" as he actually received the first patent in 1983 that used the term "RFID".

Slide 4

The next 3 slides I'm kinda skeptical about, as I discuss the development of Low Frequency, High Frequency, and Ultra High Frequency RFID in the 70s-90s. So this slide I talk about LF. I don't go very detailed into it, I am just giving a quick overview. I mention that it has the shortest read range (1.5 feet or less), and lowest read frequency (125kHz). It has less interference than higher frequencies, and is best suited for objects with high metal content. Low Frequency RFID units can be used for Cattle Tracking as well as be put in car keys to ensure security.

Slide 5

Then I talk about the developed later on High Frequency and how it has a higher read range (up to 3 feet) and operates at 13.56 MHz frequency. The interesting thing about this is that it can read multiple tags simultaneously. It is used for things like Smart Cards and Library Books.

Slide 6

Final slide I talk about IBM's patent in the early 1990s of the UHF rfid system which had the longest read range (about 9 feet), and operated at a frequency of 860-930 MHz. However, it has problems reading objects with high metal content, so LF units are preferable. It is used for things such as toll collection and merchandise tracking.


And that's my part of the presentation. My questions are:

I couldn't find when HF development was implemented (was it in the 80s)?
The technical data about LF/HF/UHF: is it accurate (especially the read ranges)?
Anything from the earlier slides that can be changed?

Thank you, I was a bit confused because I used some different sources for the information (Wiki, and other random sites) and they sometimes differed in information slightly.

Thanks in advance everyone.

[LinktheDeme]

Idk if you want to mention it but you can talk about how walmart has been trying to convert to RFID for keeping track of inventory. Only thing useful I can contribute as its brought up a lot in my accounting classes.

edit: I believe their ultimate goal is to create their entire store to run off RFID's so they can eventually (I don't know how many years in the future) automate the entire process. Only thing employees would do is replenish inventory, you'd check yourself out and etc. (At least thats what I've heard in all my classes when we start talking about inventory and in my senior project class my teacher mentioned that as well)

[Enedin]

I read a book on RFID 2 years ago, but I can't remember many details.

There are quite a lot of alternatives too, might mention those.

[volcanicweather]

You should talk about the future on RFID in retail. It's becoming a big point of discussion in retail circles for people to do "cashless transactional" simply by using their phone. Here are some links...

Apple awarded RFID patent: http://www.macgasm.net/2011/04/20/ap...-rfid-readers/

Impinj (RFID Manufacturer) has IPO: http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/htm..._impinj22.html

Starbucks is probably the most well-known company engaging in mobile payments but they currently do not use RFID...

http://www.digitaltransactions.net/news/story/2990

[bori]

Thanks for the input all, as for future applications of RFID, another group member is talking about that, and I believe they do talk a bit about future retail RFID applications.