Introduction and Overview of RFID

The purpose of this blog is to explore the way in which RFID can be used to improve customer service in the banking industry now and in the future.

RFID is Radio Frequency Identification.  Wikipedia defines RFID as the use of an object typically referred to as an RFID tag applied to or incorporated into a product animal or person for the purpose of identification and tracking using radio waves. The concept of RFID is nothing new. While predecessors of RFID have bee around since 1945 the first true ancestor of modern RFID was invented in 1973 by Mario Cudullo. This device was a passive radio transponder with memory.

There are generally three types of RFID tags, active RFID tags which contain a battery and can transmit signals autonomously, passive ID tags which have no battery and require an external source to provoke signal transmission and battery assisted passive RFID tags, which require an external source to wake up but have significant higher forward link capability providing greater range.

One of the most common uses of RFID is in toll booths for electronic toll collection.  EZ Pass is an example of this.

In the next few post we will discuss how RFID technology can be used to improve customers; banking experience.