What is RFID?

Modified on Fri, 30 Aug at 3:01 PM

Radio frequency identification, or RFID, is generic term for8 technologies that use radio waves to automatically capture an object's (and sometimes people's) unique identifier. 


There are several methods of identification, but the most common is to store a serialized number that identifies an object, and perhaps additional information, on a microchip that is attached to an antenna (the chip and the antenna together are called an RFID transponder or an RFID tag). 


The antenna enables the chip to transmit the identification information to a reader. The reader converts the radio waves reflected back from the RFID tag into digital information that can then be passed on to computers that can make use of it. 


There are many different RFID technologies. The most frequently used are NFC (Near Field Communication) and RAIN (UHF passive RFID).

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