What is RFID technology?

Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) is an accurate, cost-effective and secure identification technology. It is all these things because RFID doesn’t need contact or even line of sight between an object and a reader to work. Depending on technology, an RFID reader might detect a tag from distances as short as a few centimeters out to many meters.

The principle of RFID technology is itself quite simple. When a tag gets close enough to the right reader, that reader will detect it from its radio wave reflection and read the data the tag embedded in that reflection. That means passive RFID tags can never send signals independently and will only respond to a reader when it is close enough and the reader’s signal is strong enough.

Importantly, the frequencies used by RFID technology pose no threat to humans nor animals. Best of all, if someone loses their tag, removing its privileges from a system is easy: a couple of mouse clicks is all it takes.

In addition to access control and recording time and attendance, RFID technology is used in asset and inventory marking. Tags attached to devices can record and store data like use history and even maintenance events. Obviously, that means RFID can easily control device access only to authorized users. Similarly, access to medication or harmful substances in hospitals and laboratories can be easily controlled via RFID. Readers might harvest access data for logs that record who visited medication storage and when, while simultaneously simplifying inventory tracking. Other common RFID applications are parking solutions, bus cards and payment solutions.

While RFID\s basic remain the same, modern memory and data transfer capacities have skyrocketed from where they first started. Increased security requirements required effective encryption to protect RFID tags, systems and their data. RFID access control’s latest technological advance is mobile identification, which allows readers to interact with users’ mobile phones. Mobile access rights can be used alongside physical tags, or alone.

Learn more what RFID can do by reading some customer cases built with our products. Learn how RFID readers secure transports, prevent tax avoidance and improve waste handling.