‘World’s smallest’ RFID reader developed in UK

A diminutive and inexpensive RFID reader module, known as io and claimed to be the world’s smallest, promises to extend the potential of RFID technology into exciting new business areas.

The near field RFID reader has been developed by UK company Innovision Research & Technology and measures 12 by 2 mm. For comparison, the maker says the device is smaller than a US dime coin (see picture). In addition, the reader is expected to cost around one-tenth the price of existing technology. This is significant, because many pundits claim that the cost of readers and tags is hindering the uptake of RFID logistics tracking systems.

RFID is a low-power radio technology. When combined with an antenna and incorporated into an adhesive label or directly into a product, RFID chips can be read and written to by a remote reader.

To date, RFID has primarily been used to track objects through the supply chain but opportunities for RFID applications in other sectors are vast. Manufacturers in the consumer, transport and medical sectors are starting to catch on to the huge business potential of RFID.

Although RFID is often compared to the barcode, it is a superior technology that can add functionality and features to products relatively inexpensively. RFID does not require line-of-sight reading, its tags can have read-and-write capabilities and the technology is capable of surviving hostile environments.

The company’s io reader features an on-board RISC processor with low power consumption suited to 2.8 V battery operation. The io RFID module reads and writes to industry-standard RFID tags and smart labels. It is compliant and with the forthcoming near field communications (NFC) standard. (See Electronics News 2 Feb 2004 page 6.)

“The io reader’s small size and low cost opens the possibility of RFID applications in completely new areas,” says Rob Kitchen, head of Innovision Research & Technology’s consumer sector division. “For example, by passing an io-enabled handheld reader over an RFID tag embedded in pharmaceutical packaging, you could automatically read information relating to dosage, expiry date and manufacturing batch.”

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