Radio frequency identification (RFID) is gaining in popularity, especially

as we find ourselves in this communications age and headed towards a

ubiquitous computing world. Automatic identification systems become
an important aspect not just in today’s technology but also as part of our
daily life. We need RFID in our cars, transportation systems, access
points, and even simple transactions; we also acknowledge the need for
RFID in our logistics systems, healthcare, and tracking and locating
applications.
RFID has witnessed many technological improvements since it was
first discovered in the 1970s and 1980s and that is due to advancements
in integrated circuits and radios. Up-to-date automatic identification has
been included in many new applications and is improving the way many
processes run.
This book introduces the underlying principles of RFID systems
and goes way beyond a world of omnipresence intelligence. RFIDEnabled
Sensor Design and Applications is intended for a wide range of
readers starting from students, engineers, and researchers who would like
to learn not just about RFID systems but also about RFID potentials.
Several novel concepts are introduced and implemented throughout
the book, presenting directions toward the realization of low-cost and
environmentally friendly mass production of RFID and RFID-enalbed
sensors. Several design examples are given, backed up by detailed results
and explanations.

Chapter 1 introduces various automatic identification systems and

focuses on RFID, introducing RFID’s potential in the wireless identification
world. Chapter 2 details the fundamentals and operating principles
of RFID systems, covering the different types of RFID tags and readers,
communications among the systems components, and standards used.
Chapter 3 introduces fundamentals and operating principles of sensors
and wireless sensor networks. Chapter 4 provides the design principles for
RFID tags and RFID-enabled sensors; it provides guidelines backed up
by examples on designing RFID tags for passive and active systems, integrating
with sensors, and other tag components while addressing the
issues of packaging and power links. Chapter 5 talks about the state of the
art fabrication techniques for low cost environmentally friendly
RFID/sensors. Novel fabrication techniques such as conductive inkjet
printing are introduced and tested on paper-based and other organic high
frequency substrates. Chapter 5 also gives guidelines for designing a
“maintenance free” wearable RFID tag by using a mechanical energy
scavenger. Chapter 6 concludes with a discussion on worldwide
applications to the RFID-enabled sensors.
The authors wish to acknowledge the help and support of the members
of the Georgia Electronic Design Center at the Georgia Institute of
Technology; especially present and past members of the ATHENA
Research Group.
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