ACM TechNews

RFID Testbed Rapidly Assesses New Antenna Designs

Georgia Institute of Technology (05/05/08)

Georgia Institute of Technology (GIT) researchers have designed a RFID data collection system that can read hundreds of RFID tags simultaneously. GIT professor Gregory Durgin says the researchers have designed a simple anti-collision system that transmits multiple, unique signals simultaneously, eliminating the back-and-forth process of existing RFID systems. The system includes a transmitter, receiver, and emulator. The emulator stimulates the activity of an integrated circuit, and the transmitter sends a signal to the antenna. Attaching the emulator to the antenna allows the system to send a unique spread spectrum signal to the receivers. Each antenna signal can be separated from the others, allowing multiple tags to be read at once. Experiments found that the system can measure the power strength and phase of up to 256 tags in the field of view, which is an area in front of the reader of approximately 20 feet by 20 feet. The system's design enables the researchers to test new signaling schemes and frequencies without having to design new chips. Durgin says the system also can evaluate multiple custom antennas in a variety of configurations in realistic tag environments more quickly and at less cost than previous methods.

http://www.newswise.com/articles/view/540417/i

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