TI launches second-generation RFID silicon

With corporate giants like Wal-Mart embracing RFID in every potential nook and cranny of their supply chain, it's becoming quite the profitable little cottage industry, and Texas Instruments apparently wants a bigger piece of the pie. With the announcement of its EPC second-generation UHF-based RFID silicon, the company has blazed its own trail by insourcing the fabrication of its tags and marketing the new chips to retailers who rely on fast-paced data transmissions in their manufacturing and distribution channels. The new Gen 2 silicon obviously has complex underpinnings responsible for the changes; as TI states, it's developed "on the most advanced analog process node at 130 nanometer and with a built-in Schottky diode [saywha?] for more efficient conversion of RF signal energy." While that may not mean much to you, the skinny is that these new tags have increased chip-to-reader sensitivity, so more packages can be read at a faster pace from a greater distance than before. What this provides end-users with is greater flexibility, which has been a issue with passive RFID thus far -- new wafers and chips can be placed in more varied locations on pallets, boxes, and even flexible packaging such as bags, without fear of slipping under the radar (literally). And, as always, while retailers may dig the the increased read-range, we're sure it won't be long before the privacy advocates introduce a high-proximity RFID scrambler just in case these tags make the jump from packaging to people.

[dave @ Aug 5th 2006 1:07PM]

TI-RFid might not be the greatest name for a product! When I see the name it looks like “Terrified”, and that is kind of how I feel about rfid chips being put everywhere.

[morcheeba @ Aug 5th 2006 2:03PM]

Diodes are used to convert the incoming AC radio-freqency energy into a DC current that the chip can use. Schottky diodes have a lower voltage drops than most diodes, and thus are more efficient. More efficiency = less wasted power = less energy needed to run the RFID = longer range. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diode

But, what I find interesting is that the press release goes into process technology and diode types, but nothing about security! Are these spoofable? Cloneable? Reliable?

[xenokilla @ Aug 6th 2006 3:36AM]

in regards to security, as far as i understand walmart is looking to have their supply chain use this for the big shipment boxes moving in and out of their stores, so unless walmart starts stocking Rolex's i don't think it will be to much of a problem

[Fred Thompson @ Aug 6th 2006 3:07PM]

Correct, xenokilla. The idea is to do inventory and tracking without having to break units down or take a long time. Automatically sorting units (sorry, packagingspeak, think "pallet" to get the general idea but there isn't always a physical pallet. It's more a forkliftable-size single collection of stuff...) when they come off a truck or verifying the internal contents against an inventory list by matching unit ID in an easy fairly directionless automated reading method is the idea.