The Kynix Blog

 There are a number of hot new technologies on the forefront of online and offline retail including machine learning, the Internet of Things (IoT) and Blockchain, the information-sharing technology behind Bitcoin.We have written a bit lately about machine learning because it perhaps has the highest “world-changing” potential. But the IoT – especially when it comes to radio frequency identification (RFID) – also has huge potential to transform any retail operation.RFID has been around for many years and has been adopted by a range of retailers including Walmart, Macy’s and Amazon. The way it works is simply that each product is given a radio frequency ID tag and that tag has its own unique magnetic signature. That signature is picked up by a receiver or “RFID reader” that not only records the unique ID, but also the location of the tagged product. RFID is also the same technology that you see on new tap-and-go credit cards.  Because the tags are read magnetically, it is a more efficient system than a typical visual scanning system because the tag and the reader do not need to be line-of-site to communicate.  Therefore, the immediate benefit for an RFID-based system is that a typical retailer can reduce the time required to take a typical physical inventory by something like 90 percent.  In other words, if it took 3 days to take an inventory using barcode scanning, that same inventory would take 45 minutes using RFID. RFID also increases accuracy substantially. Usually manual-scanned physical inventory has a 4 percent inaccuracy rate.  And that number is compounded throughout the year, so cycle counts done throughout the fiscal year can reach more than 60 percent inaccuracy by the holiday selling season. Conversely, RFID typically has less than a 0.5 percent inaccuracy rate, meaning that inventory is much more accurate throughout the year.Here are some more innovative uses for RFID: Adhering To The Master Merchandising Plan Most chain retail stores have their own planogram, designating where each product should go in the store. However, the more stores that a retail chain operates, the harder it is to get each store to execute the central buyer’s merchandise plan precisely. With enough readers placed in strategic locations throughout the store, most merchandise can be tracked within a very small area. This means that the central buyer can get a report of all of the misplaced merchandise in each store. This means that if a cellphone accessory is mistakenly placed in the video game section, it will show up on a report and can be immediately remedied in the field.  In addition, oftentimes products remain in the stockroom when in fact they should be out on the floor. A solid RFID system will be able to detect whether or not items are still in the backroom, where they probably won’t sell well. Inventory Accuracy – Improving Click & CollectMost retailers have an omnichannel strategy – meaning that customers can buy online and then pick up their orders in the store. Of course, this kind of click-and-collect strategy is predicated upon the accuracy of the inventory count in each store.  In other words, if the system says that there are two units of a certain SKU in a particular store, but actually there is an inaccuracy and there are zero, they will deliver a terrible customer experience when the customer shows up at the store only to find out that the product is not there. The far better accuracy of RFID will allow retailers to have a much greater confidence level that the product is actually in the place that the system says it is.  Understanding the Store’s Hot SpotsAnother benefit of RFID is that there is a record of where products are displayed in a store. And that record can be overlaid with sales data so that we understand what specific displays and traffic areas within the store deliver the most sales. Of course, different spots within a particular store may work better with some products than they do with others.  RFID technology can also help determine the best possible scenario when considering the SKU type, store type and display area. Fast & Accurate CheckoutOne of the most customer-facing use cases for RFID is being able to pay for the products much more quickly than ever before. With RFID, the cashier does not even need to take the products out of the customer’s basket in order ring them up in the system. The ability to skip the manual scanning process entirely makes a radical difference in wait times, especially during peak periods. In addition, RFID capability at checkout greatly reduces the cash reconciliation error at the register.  Detecting Fake Goods: A product’s legitimate manufacturer can embed an RFID tag into the product in a hidden place, allowing a reseller to scan for the signal to prove that the product is authentic. The trickier issue is whether or not the actual RFID tag can be forged, but that is fodder for another discussion. There are more and more companies that can deliver a range of RFID-related products and services, from hardware to full-blown systems.Kynix is one of them.  Ref. KY78-A4650KY78-B82450A2364A  

(In a new concept for battery cathodes, nanometer-scale particles made of lithium and oxygen compounds (depicted in red and white) are embedded in a sponge-like lattice (yellow) of cobalt oxide, which keeps them stable.)  Engineers from MIT propose that a new lithium-oxygen battery material could be packaged in batteries that are very similar to conventional sealed batteries yet provide much more energy for their weight. Lithium-air batteries are considered highly promising technologies for electric cars and portable electronic devices because of their potential for delivering a high energy output in proportion to their weight. But such batteries have some pretty serious drawbacks: They waste much of the injected energy as heat and degrade relatively quickly. They also require expensive extra components to pump oxygen gas in and out, in an open-cell configuration that is very different from conventional sealed batteries But a new variation of the battery chemistry, which could be used in a conventional, fully sealed battery, promises similar theoretical performance as lithium-air batteries while overcoming all of these drawbacks. The new battery concept, called a nanolithia cathode battery, is described in the journal Nature Energy in a paper by Ju Li, the Battelle Energy Alliance Professor of Nuclear Science and Engineering at MIT; postdoc Zhi Zhu; and five others at MIT, Argonne National Laboratory, and Peking University in China.   One of the shortcomings of lithium-air batteries, Li explains, is the mismatch between the voltages involved in charging and discharging the batteries.  The batteries’ output voltage is more than 1.2 volts lower than the voltage used to charge them, which represents a significant power loss incurred in each charging cycle. “You waste 30 percent of the electrical energy as heat in charging. … It can actually burn if you charge it too fast,” he says.  Staying solid Conventional lithium-air batteries draw in oxygen from the outside air to drive a chemical reaction with the battery’s lithium during the discharging cycle, and this oxygen is then released again to the atmosphere during the reverse reaction in the charging cycle. In the new variant, the same kind of electrochemical reactions take place between lithium and oxygen during charging and discharging, but they take place without ever letting the oxygen revert to a gaseous form.  Instead, the oxygen stays inside the solid and transforms directly between its three redox states, while bound in the form of three different solid chemical compounds, Li2O, Li2O2, and LiO2, which are mixed together in the form of a glass.  This reduces the voltage loss by a factor of five, from 1.2 volts to 0.24 volts, so only 8 percent of the electrical energy is turned to heat. “This means faster charging for cars, as heat removal from the battery pack is less of a safety concern, as well as energy efficiency benefits,” Li says. This approach helps overcome another issue with lithium-air batteries: As the chemical reaction involved in charging and discharging converts oxygen between gaseous and solid forms, the material goes through huge volume changes that can disrupt electrical conduction paths in the structure, severely limiting its lifetime. The secret to the new formulation is creating minuscule particles, at the nanometer scale (billionths of a meter), which contain both the lithium and the oxygen in the form of a glass, confined tightly within a matrix of cobalt oxide. The researchers refer to these particles as nanolithia. In this form, the transitions between LiO2, Li2O2, and Li2O can take place entirely inside the solid material, he says. The nanolithia particles would normally be very unstable, so the researchers embedded them within the cobalt oxide matrix, a sponge-like material with pores just a few nanometers across. The matrix stabilizes the particles and also acts as a catalyst for their transformations. Conventional lithium-air batteries, Li explains, are “really lithium-dry oxygen batteries, because they really can’t handle moisture or carbon dioxide,” so these have to be carefully scrubbed from the incoming air that feeds the batteries. “You need large auxiliary systems to remove the carbon dioxide and water, and it’s very hard to do this.” But the new battery, which never needs to draw in any outside air, circumvents this issue. No overcharging The new battery is also inherently protected from overcharging, the team says, because the chemical reaction, in this case, is naturally self-limiting — when overcharged, the reaction shifts to a different form that prevents further activity.  “With a typical battery, if you overcharge it, it can cause irreversible structural damage or even explode,” Li says. But with the nanolithia battery, “we have overcharged the battery for 15 days, to a hundred times its capacity, but there was no damage at all.” In cycling tests, a lab version of the new battery was put through 120 charging-discharging cycles, and showed less than a 2 percent loss of capacity, indicating that such batteries could have a long useful lifetime.  And because such batteries could be installed and operated just like conventional solid lithium-ion batteries, without any of the auxiliary components needed for a lithium-air battery, they could be easily adapted to existing installations or conventional battery pack designs for cars, electronics, or even grid-scale power storage. Because these “solid oxygen” cathodes are much lighter than conventional lithium-ion battery cathodes, the new design could store as much as double the amount of energy for a given cathode weight, the team says. And with further refinement of the design, Li says, the new batteries could ultimately double that capacity again. All of this is accomplished without adding any expensive components or materials, according to Li. The carbonate they use as the liquid electrolyte in this battery “is the cheapest kind” of electrolyte, he says.  And the cobalt oxide component weighs less than 50 percent of the nanolithia component. Overall, the new battery system is “very scalable, cheap, and much safer” than lithium-air batteries, Li says. The team expects to move from this lab-scale proof of concept to a practical prototype within about a year. “This is a foundational breakthrough, which may shift the paradigm of oxygen-based batteries,” says Xiulei Ji, an assistant professor of chemistry at Oregon State University, who was not involved in this work.  “In this system, commercial carbonate-based electrolyte works very well with solvated superoxide shuttles, which is quite impressive and may have to do with the lack of any gaseous O2 in this sealed system. All active masses of the cathode throughout cycling are solid, which presents not only large energy density but compatibility with the current battery manufacturing infrastructure.” The research team included MIT research scientists Akihiro Kushima and Zongyou Yin; Lu Qi of Peking University; and Khalil Amine and Jun Lu of Argonne National Laboratory in Illinois. The work was supported by the National Science Foundation and the U.S. Department of Energy. Ref.KY605-CR2025VPKY605-NH12VP

In most cases, machine-based automated testing is based on visual or physical criteria. In contrast, a new cognitive system detects erroneous sounds up to 99 percent of the errors. In industrial production, it is crucial that the machines work and that the product does not have any defects. The production process is therefore continuously monitored. By humans, but also by more and more sensors, cameras, software and hardware. In most cases, machine-based automated testing is based on visual or physical criteria. Only people also use their ears naturally: if something sounds unusual, a person switches the machine off for safety. The problem is this: Everyone perceives noises somewhat differently. Whether something goes wrong is therefore rather a subjective feeling and presents an increased susceptibility to error.Acoustic measurement technology with AIThe Fraunhofer IDMT develops cognitive systems that accurately identify faults based on acoustic signals. The technological approach combines intelligent acoustic measurement technology and signal analysis, machine learning as well as data-safe, flexible data storage. The rersearchers integrate the intelligence of listening into the industrial condition control of machines and automated test systems for products. Once they have been trained, cognitive systems can hear more objectively than human hearing: instead of two ears, they have, so to speak, many thousands of them at their disposal, in the form of millions of neutral data records. Initial pilot projects with industry are already under way. The researchers have been able to detect up to 99 percent of the defects purely acoustically. Assigning sounds distinctlyThe scientists identify possible sources of noises and analyze their causes, create a noise model of the environment, and focus their microphones there. It is ideal to simulate the human ear: it receives sounds through the air. From the total signal, the system calculates out background sounds, such as voices or from a forklift driving by. This is then repeatedly compared with previously determined, laboratory-pure reference noise. With the help of artificial neural networks, the scientists are gradually developing algorithms that are able to detect noises which occur from errors. The cleaner the acoustic signal is, the better the cognitive system recognizes deviations. The technology is so sensitive that it also displays nuances in error intensity and manages complex tasks. An example from the field of automotive production: In modern car seats, a large number of individual motors are installed, with the aid of which the driver can adjust his seat individually. The design of the motors is not the same, their noises are different and they are installed in different places. In a pilot project with an automotive supplier, our acoustic monitoring system was able to detect all of the error sources perfectly. Flexible, secure data storage in the cloudThe Fraunhofer researchers are able to ensure the data security of the collected acoustic signals through user authorizations as well as rights and identity management. An example is the decoupling of real and virtual identities in order to not violate user rights when evaluating the data by different persons. Machines and test systems are usually installed in the production line. The researchers store their acoustic data records in a secure cloud. Ref.Scientists turn to AI...

A new, electronic skin microsystem tracks heart rate, respiration, muscle movement and other health data, and wirelessly transmits it to a smartphone. The electronic skin offers several improvements over existing trackers, including greater flexibility, smaller size, and the ability to stick the self-adhesive patch -- which is a very soft silicone about four centimeters (1.5 inches) in diameter -- just about anywhere on the body. （A research team led by Professor Kyung-In Jang of Robotics Engineering collects, analyzes, and diagnoses bio-signals wirelessly transmitted to mobile application from the soft electronic skin.）   The microsystem was developed by an international team led by Kyung-In Jang, a professor of robotics engineering at South Korea's Daegu Gyeongbuk Institute of Science and Technology, and John A. Rogers, the director of Northwestern University's Center for Bio-Integrated Electronics. The team described the new device in the journal Nature Communications.   The electronic skin contains about 50 components connected by a network of 250 tiny wire coils embedded in protective silicone. The soft material enables it to conform to body, unlike other hard monitors. It wirelessly transmits data on movement and respiration, as well as electrical activity in the heart, muscles, eyes and brain to a smartphone application.   Unlike flat sensors, the tiny wires coils in this device are three-dimensional, which maximizes flexibility. The coils can stretch and contract like a spring without breaking. The coils and sensor components are also configured in an unusual spider web pattern that ensures "uniform and extreme levels of stretchability and bendability in any direction." It also enables tighter packing of components, minimizing size. The researchers liken the design to a winding, curling vine, connecting sensors, circuits and radios like individual leaves on the vine.   The key to creating this novel microsystem is stretching the elastic silicone base while the tiny wire arcs, made of gold, chromium and phosphate, are laid flat onto it. The arcs are firmly connected to the base only at one end of each arc. When the base is allowed to contract, the arcs pop up, forming three-dimensional coils.   The entire system is powered wirelessly rather than being charged by a battery. The researchers also considered key electrical and mechanical issues to optimize the system's physical layout, such as sensor placement or wire length, to minimize signal interference and noise.   The electronic skin could be used in a variety of applications, including continuous health monitoring and disease treatment. Professor Jang states "Combining big data and artificial intelligence technologies, the wireless biosensors can be developed into an entire medical system which allows portable access to collection, storage, and analysis of health signals and information." He added "We will continue further studies to develop electronic skins which can support interactive telemedicine and treatment systems for patients in blind areas for medical services such as rural houses in mountain village." The microsystem could also be used in other areas of emerging interest, such as soft robotics or autonomous navigation, which the team is now investigating.   Ref. KY32-AD22050RZ KY32-AD9945KCPZ

Good things come in small packages. This is especially true in the world of portable wireless communications systems. Cell phones, wearables, and implantable electronics have shrunk over time, which has made them more useful in many cases. But a critical component of these devices -- the antenna -- hasn't followed suit. Researchers haven't been able to get them much smaller, until now. In a paper published online Tuesday in Nature Communications, Nian Sun, professor of electrical and computer engineering at Northeastern, and his colleagues describe a new approach to designing antennas. The discovery enables researchers to construct antennas that are up to a thousand times smaller than currently available antennas, Sun said. "A lot of people have tried hard to reduce the size of antennas. This has been an open challenge for the whole society," Sun said. "We looked into this problem and thought, 'why don't we use a new mechanism?'" Traditional antennas are built to receive and transmit electromagnetic waves, which travel fast -- up to the speed of light. But electromagnetic waves have a relatively long wavelength. That means antennas must maintain a certain size in order to work efficiently with electromagnetic radiation. Instead of designing antennas at the electromagnetic wave resonance -- so they receive and transmit electromagnetic waves -- researchers tailored the antennas to acoustic resonance. Acoustic resonance waves are roughly 10 thousand times -- smaller than electromagnetic waves. This translates to an antenna that's one or two orders of magnitude smaller than even the most compact antennas available today. Since acoustic resonance and electromagnetic waves have the same frequency, the new antennas would still work for cell phones and other wireless communication devices. And they would provide the same instantaneous delivery of information. In fact, researchers found their antennas performed better than traditional kinds. Tiny antennas have big implications, especially for Internet of Things devices, and in the biomedical field. For example, Sun said the technology could lead to better bioinjectible, bioimplantable, or even bioinjestible devices that monitor health. One such application that neurosurgeons are interested in exploring is a device that could sense neuron behavior deep in the brain. But bringing this idea to life has stumped researchers, until now. "Something that's millimeters or even micrometers in size would make biomedical implantation much easier to achieve, and the tissue damage would be much less," Sun said. Ref.KY78-501WPKY78-ASM56

This article will introduce to you how RFID sensors are applied to detecting food quality and monitoring food safety.   Catalog I. Brief Introduction II. General Principles of Design and Operation of RFID Food Sensors III. Example of Applications FAQ I. Brief Introduction   Radio frequency identification (RFID) sensors are finding their diverse applications when an unobtrusive sensor form factor, battery-free design, and minimal sensor cost are the top three requirements for a new sensor. Examples of diverse applications include pharmaceutical, warehousing, agricultural, industrial, food safety, and security.    Benefits of RFID sensors for food quality and safety, as compared to tethered sensors, include the non-obtrusive nature of their installations, higher nodal densities, and lower installation costs without the need for extensive wiring.   In addition, a significant advantage of RFID and other electronic sensors over optical sensors is in the ability to perform measurements through non-transparent packaging.   There are several developed battery-free wireless sensing technologies based on magnetoelastic,16 thickness-shear modes, surface acoustic wave, magnetic acoustic resonance, and resonant LCR (inductor-capacitor-resistor) transducers. Several approaches for battery-free RFID sensing have been explored, e.g. based on chipless RFID sensors.   We recently developed a methodology to implement passive RFID tags for physical, chemical, and biological sensing. In our RFID sensing approach, the resonance impedance spectrum of the sensor antenna is measured and further correlated with the chemical, biological, or physical properties of the environment. This correlation is performed using the multivariable response of the RFID sensor computed from the measured impedance spectrum.   The complementary driving forces in successful sensor development are innovative ideas and the market size for new sensors. The market size is often but not always is supported by the regulatory requirements. If both driving forces are strong, the sensor development moves from its initial proof-of-concept technology readiness level to the commercialization of the sensor technology.   The sizes of markets for food safety testing products ($0.25 B) and pathogen detecting sensors ($0.5 B) and provide exciting opportunities for the development of new sensing technologies for food quality and safety.   Intelligent labeling of food products to indicate and report their freshness and other conditions is one of the important possible applications of the developed RFID sensors.   Unlike other food freshness monitoring approaches that require a thin-film battery for operation of an RFID sensor and fabrication of custom-made sensors, our developed passive RFID sensing approach combines advantages of both battery-free and cost-effective sensor design and offers response selectivity that is impossible to achieve with other individual sensors.   In this review, we summarize the result of the development of RFID sensors for food quality and safety. In these sensors, the electric field generated in the RFID sensor antenna extends out from the plane of the RFID sensor and is affected by the ambient environment providing the opportunity for sensing.   This environment may be in the form of a food sample within the electric field of the sensing region or a sensing film deposited onto the sensor antenna. Examples of applications include monitoring of freshness of milk, the freshness of fish, and bacterial growth.   II. General Principles of Design and Operation of RFID Food Sensors     (Figure 1) Operation principle of developed passive RFID sensors. (A) Sensor equivalent circuit described by the inductance LA, capacitance CA, and resistance RA of the sensing antenna coil, capacitance CS and resistance RS of the sensing region, and capacitance ...   In order to assess the broad applicability of the developed sensors for food safety applications, it is critical to understand the general principles of their design and operation (see Figure 1).   The equivalent circuit of the developed sensors forms an inductor-capacitor-resistor (LCR) circuit and is described by the inductance LA, capacitance CA, and resistance RA of the sensing antenna coil, capacitance CS and resistance RS of the sensing region, and capacitance CC and resistance RC of the integrated circuit (IC) chip (see Figure 1A).   Reading and writing of digital information into the RFID sensor and measurement of the impedance of the RFID sensor antenna are performed via mutual inductance coupling between the RFID sensor antenna and the pickup coil of a digital/analog sensor reader.   Impedance spectra Ž(f) of the sensor are measured using a laboratory or a portable network analyzer component and digital data from an IC chip is measured with a digital RFID reader component29 of our custom sensor reader.   Digital data include sensor calibrations, food manufacturing data, end-user data, etc. The network analyzers are used to scan the frequencies over the range of interest (typically centered at 13 MHz with a scan range of ~10 MHz).   The electric field generated in the RFID sensor antenna extends out from the plane of the RFID sensor (Figure 1B) and is affected by the ambient environment providing the opportunity for sensing. This environment may be in the form of a food sample within the electric field of the sensing region or a sensing film deposited onto the sensor antenna.   In both cases, the impedance of the antenna circuit Ž(f) is modulated through the changes in capacitance CS and resistance RS of the sensing region. This sensing region can be in the form of a full antenna or a complementary region in contact with the antenna.32 Numerous types of sensing materials applicable for food quality sensing were recently analyzed.   To achieve accurate and precise measurements using our sensors, we measure the real Zre(f) and imaginary Zim(f) parts of the impedance spectra Ž(f) and calculate several spectral parameters.   A schematic representation of the real Zre(f) and imaginary Zim(f) parts of the impedance spectrum Ž(f) of the sensor without possible effects from a pickup coil is illustrated in Figure 1C. Several calculated spectral parameters include the frequency position Fp and magnitude Zp of Zre(f) and the resonant F1 and antiresonant F2 frequencies of Zim(f).   Additional parameters can also be calculated (impedance magnitudes Z1 and Z2 at F1 and F2 frequencies, respectively, zero-reactance frequency, quality factor, etc). From the measured parameters, resistance, capacitance, and other parameters of the resonant antenna can be also determined. Figure 2 shows examples of RFID sensors applied in our studies for food quality and safety.       (Figure 2) Examples of employed RFID sensors based on (A) Texas Instruments RFID tag, (B) Avery Dennison RFID tag, (C) TagSys RFID tag.   Uncontrolled temperature fluctuations produce independent effects on the different components of the equivalent circuit. These independent effects are correlated with the spectral features of the resonance impedance spectra and are resolved by the multivariable response of the sensor.   For scenarios when the food is irradiated by ionizing radiation as a food safety measure to destroy bacteria, pathogens, and pests,39,40 conventional RFID IC memory chips do not survive the applied radiation dose that can be up to 30 kGy.   We have developed a technical solution to solve this problem where an IC chip is based on the Ferroelectric Random Access Memory (FRAM) technology and provides reliable gamma-resistant RFID tags and sensors.   The FRAM memory chips have 2000 bytes of user memory (MB89R118A, Fujitsu Microelectronics Ltd, Japan)42 and are made using a standard RF signal modulation circuitry fabricated using a 0.35-μm complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) process and a non-volatile FRAM memory.43 A photo of this IC chip is shown in Figure 3A while one of our RFID sensors with such an IC chip is shown in Figure 3B.   (Figure 3) Photographs of (A) FRAM IC memory chip MB89R118A and (B) Developed RFID sensor for gamma-sterilizable applications. Sensor diameter = 10 mm. III. Example of Applications       · Monitoring of milk freshness     · Monitoring of fish condition     · Direct monitoring of bacteria growth FAQ   1. What is RFID used for? Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) is the wireless non-contact use of radio frequency waves to transfer data. Tagging items with RFID tags allows users to automatically and uniquely identify and track inventory and assets.   2. What is RFID and how it works? RFID is a method of data collection that involves automatically identifying objects through low-power radio waves. Data is sent and received with a system consisting of RFID tags, an antenna, an RFID reader, and a transceiver.   3. What RFID means? Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) refers to a wireless system comprised of two components: tags and readers. The reader is a device that has one or more antennas that emit radio waves and receive signals back from the RFID tag.   4. Is RFID harmful to human? It is a non-ionizing type of radiation, but some researches show that it could have a negative impact on the human body in a long-term period [11, 12]. So, for the safety reasons, manufacturers of the RFID systems have limited the range of the RFID antennas used in their systems.   5. Is RFID tag and FASTag same? FASTag is a device that employs Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) technology for making toll payments directly while the vehicle is in motion. FASTag (RFID Tag) is affixed on the windscreen of the vehicle and enables a customer to make the toll payments directly from the account which is linked to FASTag.   6.What is RFID and its advantages? RFID technology automates data collection and vastly reduces human effort and error. RFID supports tag reading with no line-of-sight or item-by-item scans required. RFID readers can read multiple RFID tags simultaneously, offering increases in efficiency.   7. Why is RFID bad? Some negative effects are that its deadly, if RFID tags combine with static electricity you can die. Another negative effect is that the government is slowly taking away surviving resources and giving ultimatums, such as if you don't get the RFID tracking chip your public assistance will be terminated.   8.What are the disadvantages of RFID? a. Materials like metal & liquid can impact signal. b. Sometimes not as accurate or reliable as barcode scanners. c. Cost – RFID readers can be 10x more expensive than barcode readers. d. Implementation can be difficult & time consuming.   9.How do I charge my RFID FASTag? In order to recharge your FASTag sticker, just hit the Add Money option in your Paytm app. FASTag will automatically reserve some amount from your wallet, which can be used at toll plazas later. Do note that FASTag can be used only after 20 mins of adding money to the Paytm Wallet.   10. Can I use existing RFID for FASTag? If a vehicle already has an RFID tag, it might already be activated. When you buy the vehicle, RFID tag payment was also done. It might also have a minimum balance of INR 100 or 200 as is required by the bank. You can recharge it with your Customer ID or Wallet ID of FASTag.   11. How does RFID work without power? Passive RFID tags have no power of their own and are powered by the radio frequency energy transmitted from RFID readers/antennas. The signal sent by the reader and antenna is used to power on the tag and reflect the energy back to the reader.   12. What are the types of RFID tags? RFID tags can be grouped into three categories based on the range of frequencies they use to communicate data: low frequency (LF), high frequency (HF) and ultra-high frequency (UHF). Generally speaking, the lower the frequency of the RFID system, the shorter the read range and slower the data read rate.   13.How do I know if I have an RFID chip? The best way to check for an implant would be to have an X-ray performed. RFID transponders have metal antennas that would show up in an X-ray. You could also look for a scar on the skin. Because the needle used to inject the transponder under the skin would be quite large, it would leave a small but noticeable scar.   14. Does RFID require power? Active RFID tags possess their own power source – an internal battery that enables them to have extremely long read ranges as well as large memory banks. Typically, active RFID tags are powered by a battery that will last between 3 - 5 years, but when the battery fails, the active tag will need to be replaced.   15. What is the difference between a QR code and RFID? QR codes must always be “read-only”, whereas RFID tags can be “read-write”, depending on the radio frequency that's being used. ... So, not only are RFID tags futuristic and have more uses than QR tags, they also have many more applications. The read range is far superior for an RFID tag.   Ref. KY45-R300-F35-M14-C KY78-2867704