Over the Horizon
RFID INVENTORY systems still fall far short of Weiser’s vision: they do not help us perform everyday tasks. Indeed, computers and chips scattered throughout our homes—in toasters, games, entertainment systems and other devicess—demand more, not less, of our attention. We must configure and control dozens of devices, transfer data between them, and try to figure out what went wrong when a failure occurs. Simple tasks, such as setting a wristwatch or operating a television, require an instruction manual. It is clear that for computing to become invisible, we need not only ubiquitous computing but what David L. Tennenhouse of Intel calls “proactive computing”— systems that anticipate what we need and provide it without forcing us to do a lot of work first.
For proactive computing to function on a major scale, networks of RFID readers must be placed throughout the environment. Forward thinkers envision two main types of proactive RFID networks, both of which include a web of interacting readers that monitor many RFID tags and convey the information they collect to remote computers.
One type is made up of readers set permanently in place and connected together by cables. These devices would power and read tags—some with sensors— that are also permanently fixed in place. (If necessary, the tags could also be read by mobile readers passing by.)
This kind of network might be installed on a bridge: tags would be buried deep inside concrete structural members, welded into joints between steel beams and put in other places where their sensors could measure stress and change in various parts of the structure. They would collect and store such information as the discovery that a structural member had been flexed beyond its safe limits during a seismic tremor. The readers would be powered from ordinary AC electric lines or through the interreader network cables and would be hardwired to an Internet connection, so they could send their data to computers that would analyze the input and take action in response.
The second type of system—called an ad hoc wireless network—does not have all its readers and sensor tags permanently in place. Instead it is made up of RFID readers put wherever they are needed, in the same way you would choose a spot to plug in a lamp. They read tags that surround them: some of the tags are fixed and stationary; some have sensors and some do not; and some are mobile, attached to devices and people that pass through the network. Readers may be AC-powered if they are near power outlets or may be battery-powered. These readers, also known as network nodes, can form short-range wireless connections to one another on the fly: information moves across the network by hopping wirelessly from node to node (which is why these are sometimes called multihop networks) and flows toward a gateway node with an Internet connection.
You might create an ad hoc network with many readers monitoring hundreds of tag sensors spread out across tens of square miles. Such a network could provide the data to make improved weather forecasts. If the sensors could simultaneously detect wind speeds at many locations across the whole area, the computer could even sense the formation of a tornado at an early stage and generate an earlier alert than is possible today.
An ad hoc RFID network in an office building could perform many tasks. Readers could monitor sensor tags that indicate the temperature in different rooms so that the central computer could maintain constant conditions throughout the building or on a single floor. Other readers would scan employees’ security badges and recognize the tags in their laptops so that workers could access centrally stored data or link up with colleagues elsewhere in the building. The design of all kinds of sensor networks is being researched by Deborah Estrin’s team at the Center for Embedded Networked Sensing at the University of California at Los Angeles, by David E. Culler’s team at the University of California at Berkeley, by Gaetano Borriello’s team at the University of Washington, at Intel Research’s Network of Labs, and at several small companies, including Crossbow in Santa Clara, Calif., Dust Inc. in Berkeley, Calif., and Sensoria in San Diego.
See what we're tweeting about
3 Comments
Add CommentI guess I am not understanding what the problem is...if you are not doing anything wrong, what's the concern? Shield the RFID that has personally identifiable material so it's not usable without our consent. How hard can it be? Remember how careful we have to be with the magnetic strips on credit cards?
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisLike a previous post stated- if you don't want to be identified, better not have ANY kind of a telephone. No credit cards, no computers. No SS Number. If you are using electricity, then it's already too late. "They" know who you are, and if you are THAT paranoid, I feel very sorry for you. Move to Montana, live like a Mountain Man and enjoy your very uncomfortable life. I am not doing anything that would be of any interest to anyone, so why on earth would anyone want to know what I do, what I eat, etc. So what? Let "them". If they want to waste their time trying to sell stuff to me when I am strong enough to just say "no"?
I think it's silly to waste time on something so trivial, something that can do so much GOOD, and actually lower costs of goods?
Stay with me here...How about a time when you never have to wait at a check out line again? Sound like heaven? That's what RFID can do. You register once, give them a credit/debit card and your personal data is kept secure. RFID tags should be in every product you purchase and when you remove the sheath that is covering your RFID store card you simply exit the store it's all instantly tallied and paid for. I bet this would cut at least 30 minutes off a weekly shopping trip, not to mention the aggravation.
Lighten up people, it's not going to be that bad. Change is hard, but you will get over it.
Keep dreaming. If you discover that a human being is more than just a node on a network diagram to be shuffled and tracked by human network administrators with unlimited and unaccountable powers- who, by the way, will be the architects of your digital wanderings in a world surrendered in the name of petty convenience... Well then- chances are- you'll have your chip turned off. Life will be so convenient, automatic and 'super-awesome' for every other half-wit still plugged in, that no one will care to hear your thoughts contrary to what is prescribed for the digital herd to consume until its too late for any legitimate challenge.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisYou would be a fool to deny the potential evil of a currency issued by the few that is tracked, controlled and manipulated from which the people are ignorant. We already have such a system, and it has built itself many industrial complexes which must be fed through perpetual wars, exploitation, incarceration, and the stagnation of intellectual development concerning individuals inside the system. You talk about a Social Security Number as if it is a matter of choice, but its not. Its an artificial womb created to transform the American household into an economic factory. And what you are advocating is its grand perfection.
Before you tell me that Im paranoid and fearful of shadows. I will tell you that I have no fear of these misanthropic men devoid of humanity; and I know what I am talking about.
The reason that I have left you a reply in such a tone is that& This is not a joke, and this isnt to be taken lightly.
You don't get to tell ME or ANYONE ELSE to go live in the mountains simply because we dont want to get chipped, so that YOU can to chop off 30 minutes of the ridiculously stupid American consumption/shopping adventure. This country was founded by great men, with greater ideals for humanity. We can turn this nonsense around if people begin to take responsibility for themselves. But you, Miss, are grossly deluded when you praise your strength to say No , which is actually a freedom given to you by those aforementioned great men with a vision& All while wishing it away the next.
We started checking out the RFID options for the small manufacturing company where I work, but in the end decided to go with a simpler <a href="http://www.kzsoftware.com/products/asset-management-software/">Fixed Asset Register system</a>. I hope we see the day when this can be integrated with RFID, but for now, this simple system works well for us.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to this