radio-frequency identification

Also known as RFID, radio frequency identifier

technology using electromagnetic fields to automatically identify and track tags attached to objects

AI overview

Radio-frequency identification is a technology that uses electromagnetic fields to automatically identify and track tags attached to objects. It matters because it enables quick, automatic identification of items without requiring physical contact or line-of-sight scanning, making it useful for applications like inventory management, asset tracking, and product authentication.

AI-generated from the Wikipedia summary — may contain errors.

~40 min read

Encyclopedic overview

Textile RFID tag for laundry with printed EPC and QR code

Radio-frequency identification (RFID) uses electromagnetic fields to automatically identify and track tags attached to objects. An RFID system consists of a tiny radio transponder called a tag, a radio receiver, and a transmitter. When triggered by an electromagnetic interrogation pulse from a nearby RFID reader device, the tag transmits digital data, usually an identifying inventory number, back to the reader. This number can be used to track inventory goods.

Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “radio-frequency identification” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.