RFID at Ultra and Super High Frequencies: Theory and application

RFID AT ULTRA

AND SUPER HIGH

FREQUENCIES

Theory and application

Dominique Paret

Consultant – Senior Technical Expert, DP-Consulting

Translated by: Roderick Riesco, MA, Member of the Institute

of Translation and Interpreting, UK

RFID AT ULTRA

AND SUPER HIGH

FREQUENCIES

BY THE SAME AUTHOR

Identification Radiofr
equence et Cartes a Puces – Description, 2nd edition,

Dunod, France, 2001

Applications en Identification Radiofr
equence et Cartes a Puce sans Contact,

Dunod, France, 2003

Identification Radiofr
equence et Cartes a Puces – Applications, Dunod, France, 2004

Multiplexed Networks for Embedded Systems, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd, Chichester, 2007

RFID and Contactless Smart Card Applications, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd, Chichester, 2007

Illustrations in the text: Alain and Ursula Bouteveille-Sanders

RFID AT ULTRA

AND SUPER HIGH

FREQUENCIES

Theory and application

Dominique Paret

Consultant – Senior Technical Expert, DP-Consulting

Translated by: Roderick Riesco, MA, Member of the Institute

of Translation and Interpreting, UK

Originally published in the French language by Dunod as Identification et trac¸abiliti
e en UHF–SHF,

RFID de Super Hautes Fr
equences by Dominique Paret.
2005 Dunod.

This edition
2009, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd

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Library of Congress Cataloguing-in-Publication Data

Paret, Dominique.

RFID at ultra and super high frequencies : theory and application /

Dominique Paret.

p. cm.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN 978-0-470-03414-9 (cloth)

1. Radio frequency identification systems. 2. Radio frequency–Identification.

3. Wireless communication systems. I. Title.

TK6553.P32 2009

621.384’151–dc22

2009031446

A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

ISBN: 978-0-470-03414-9 (Hbk)

Set in 10/12pt, Times Roman by Thomson Digital, Noida, India

Printed in Great Britain by CPI Antony Rowe, Chippenham, Wiltshire

Contents

About the Author xi

Preface xiii

Acknowledgements xvii

Note to Readers xix

Part One RFID: General Features, Basic Principles and Market 1

1 Introduction, Definitions and Vocabulary 3

1.1 To Understand Radio Frequency, We Must Know about Frequencies

and Their Classification 4

1.2 RFID: Who Uses It and What For? 6

1.3 History 6

1.4 Radio Frequency (or Contactless) Identification and Its Range

of Applications 7

1.5 The Concept of Contactless Communication 8

1.6 The Elements, Terms and Vocabulary of RFID 10

1.7 Vocabulary: The Many Terms Used for the Elements of RFID 12

1.8 Appendix: Units and Constants 14

2 General Operating Principles of the Base Station–Tag Pair 17

2.1 Energy Transfer and Communication Modes 17

2.2 Forward Link and Return Link 19

2.3 Data Communications 30

2.4 The Principle of Communication 33

2.5 The Concept of Operating Modes 35

2.6 General Operating Problems in Data Transmission 37

2.7 More Specific Problems Relating to ‘Long Distance’ RFID Systems 40

3 The Market and Applications for Contactless Technology 43

3.1 The Market for Contactless Technology and RFID 43

3.2 Applications for Tags 44

3.3 Operators and Participants in the Market 50

Part Two Wave Propagation: Principles, Theories ... and the Reality 55

4 Some Essential Theory 57

4.1 The Phenomenon of Propagation and Radiation 57

4.2 The Hertzian Dipole 57

4.3 Classification of Fields and Regions of Space 62

4.4 RFID Applications Using UHF and SHF, i.e. Far Field Applications 66

4.5 The Hertzian Dipole and a Dipole of any Length, l/n and l/2 85

4.6 List of the Main Formulae in this Chapter 92

4.7 Appendix 1: Brief Notes on Maxwell’s Equations 94

4.8 Appendix 2: Brief Notes on Complex Numbers 96

4.9 Appendix 3: Brief Notes on Powers Expressed as

Complex Numbers 97

4.10 Appendix 4: Brief Notes on Vectors 100

5 Wave Propagation in Free Space 103

5.1 Isotropic and Anisotropic Antennas 103

5.2 Antenna Gain 105

5.3 Power Flux Density at One Point in Space 110

5.4 Effective Radiated Power PERP 112

6 Power Recovery at the Terminals of the Tag Antenna 121

6.1 Recovering the Transmitted Radiated Power (or Some of It) 121

6.2 The Concept of Aperture or Surface 122

6.3 Definition of the Main Parameters Required for an

RFID Application 140

7 Reality Check: How to Manage Everyday Problems 163

7.1 Effects of the Application Environment 164

7.2 Tag Polarization Losses, upolarization ¼ p 177

7.3 Antenna Load Mismatch Factor, uload matching ¼ q 183

7.4 Voltage Standing Wave Ratio (VSWR) 187

7.5 Losses Due to the Physical Design of the Antenna, uantenna 195

7.6 By Way of Conclusion 195

7.7 Real-World Examples of RFID at UHF and 2.45 GHz 196

7.8 Effects of the Mounting of the Integrated Circuit on the

Tag Substrate 198

7.9 By Way of Conclusion 199

7.10 Example at UHF and SHF 199

7.11 Appendix: Fact and Fantasy About UHF Tags and Water 202

8 Reflection and/or Reradiation of Waves and RFID Applications 207

8.1 The Physical Phenomenon of Wave Scattering 207

8.2 Scattering Modes 209

8.3 Power Scattered/Reradiated/Reflected by the Tag, Ps 209

8.4 Radar Cross-Section (RCS) of the Tag, se s 220

8.5 Appendix 238

vi Contents

9 The Back Scattering Technique and Its Application 241

9.1 The Principle of Communication by Back Scattering Between

the Base Station and the Tag 241

9.2 The Merit Factor of a Tag, Dse s or DRCS 245

9.3 Appendix: Summary of the Principal Formulae of

Chapters 7, 8 and 9 269

10 RFID Case Studies Summarizing the Preceding Chapters 273

10.1 Case 1: Application to a ‘Remotely Powered Passive Tag’ 273

10.2 Case 2: Application to a ‘Battery-Assisted Passive Tag’ 273

10.3 Examples 1a and 1b: Application to a ‘Remotely Powered Passive Tag’ 274

10.4 Example 2: Application to a ‘Battery-Assisted Passive Tag’ 281

Part Three Communication and Transmission, Baseband Signals,

Carrier Modulation and Interleaving 291

11 Digital Aspect: Bit Coding and Baseband Signals 295

11.1 Bit Coding 295

11.2 Different Types of Bit Coding for Use in RFID at UHF and SHF 298

11.3 Summary of the Different Types of Bit Coding 310

12 Analogue Aspect: Carrier Modulation Methods 311

12.1 Type of Modulation 311

12.2 Types of Carrier Modulation for the Forward Link from

the Base Station to the Tag 312

12.3 Amplitude Modulation 313

12.4 Frequency Modulation and Phase Modulation 321

12.5 Conclusion 324

13 Spread Spectrum Techniques 325

13.1 Frequency Hopping and Agility Systems and Spread Spectrum

Techniques 325

13.2 Spread Spectrum Techniques (Spread Spectrum Modulation, SS) 326

13.3 Frequency Hopping or Agility Systems for Spreading the Radiated

Spectrum of Narrowband Modulated Carriers 332

13.4 Spread Spectrum Systems for Spreading the Radiated Spectrum

of Wideband Modulated Carriers 342

13.5 ‘Hybrid’ Spread Spectrum Techniques: DSSS and FHSS 350

13.6 Back to the Future 351

13.7 Examples at SHF 352

13.8 FHSS, LBT, DSSS... and RFID 353

14 Interactions and Conclusion 357

14.1 Relations, Interaction and Performance:

How They Are Affected by the Choice of Bit Coding

and the Types of Modulation Used 357

14.2 General Conclusion of Part Three 366

Contents vii

Part Four Standards and Regulations 369

15 Standards for RFID at UHF and SHF 371

15.1 The Purpose of the Standards 371

15.2 Users and Providers of Standards 371

15.3 The ISO/OSI Layer Models 372

15.4 ISO Standards for Contactless Technology 376

15.5 Appendix 1: Hierarchy and Structure of the EPC System 402

15.6 Appendix 2: Structure of the EPC Number 403

15.7 Appendix 3: Some Facts about the Everyday Performance

of ISO 18000-6 mode C – EPC C1 G2 405

16 Regulations and Human Exposure 411

16.1 Survey of Standards and Regulations 411

16.2 Summary of Regulations in the USA, Europe, France

and the Rest of the World Relating to RFID at UHF and SHF 415

16.3 Standards for Magnetic and Electrical Fields

in a Human Environment: Human Exposure 418

16.4 Other Requirements to be Met 422

17 The Effects and Repercussions of Regulations on Performance 425

17.1 Frequency 425

17.2 Transmission Level 427

17.3 Summary 440

17.4 Comparison Between Europe and the USA 440

17.5 UHF or 13.56 MHz Around the World and in Europe 441

17.6 Appendix: The Main Standards and Regulations 448

Part Five Components for Tags and Base Stations 453

18 RFID Tags 455

18.1 Some General Remarks 455

18.2 Summary of Operating Principles 455

18.3 The Technology of Tags 457

18.4 Antennas for Tags 462

19 The Base Station 471

19.1 Introduction 471

19.2 Examples of Base Station Hardware Architecture 480

19.3 Examples of Products 500

19.4 Antennas for Base Stations 501

19.5 Some Concluding Remarks 505

20 Conformity, Performance and Methods for Evaluating

Tags and Systems 507

20.1 Official Measurement and Test Methods 507

20.2 Required Parameters 509

viii Contents

20.3 Simple Methods of Measurement 510

20.4 By Way of Conclusion 513

Conclusions 517

Useful Addresses, Component Manufacturers and Further Reading 519

Index 521

Contents ix

About the Author

Dominique Paret

Consultant – Senior Technical Expert, DP-Consulting

Dominique graduated in Electronic Engineering from Br
eguet/ESIEE and holds a DEA

Sciences from Paris VI University. He started his carrier in 1968 as TV Group Leader at

Consumer Application Labs in RTC–Compelec (where he created several patents in the

analogue and digital fields).

Before creating DP-Consulting (training and consulting services) in May 2006, he spent

40 years with Philips Semiconductors/NXP France as Technical Support Manager in

“Innovation and Emerging Business”. More recently he has worked mainly on two leading

edge subjects:

. new concepts for automotive applications such as CAN, LIN, very high speed bus,

real-time triggered concepts – FlexRay, Safe by Wire, SBC, FailSafe SBC systems;

. identification including RFID (from 125 kHz up to 5.8 GHz, UWB), contact and

contactless smart cards, e_government applications (e_passport, e_visas, e_ID cards),

NFC (near field communications), biometrics, geo-localization and cryptographic

systems.

Dominique Paret is also an official National Representative Delegate in several standardization

organizations such as the French national body “AFNOR”, International “ISO” working

groups and ECMA, for contactless smart cards and RFID (proximity ISO 14 443, vicinity

15 693, RFID 18 000 – x, EPC, Biometrics, ICAO) and other consortia for the automotive

sector covering LIN, CAN, FlexRay and TMP systems. The author also acts as one of the

contactless/RFID technical experts in COFRAC (Comit
e Franc¸ais d’Accr
editation).

Additionally, Dominique Paret teaches industrial LAN, RFID, smart cards and digital TV

techniques and technologies as “Senior Lecturer” in several Electronic Engineering High

Schools in France (ESIEE, ESEO, ESISAR, ENSEA, ISEN, ESIGETEL, ESAIP). He

occasionally teaches at F’Satie Pretoria University, South Africa, and INPT in Rabat,

Morocco.

Dominique Paret has written many technical books on I2C, CAN, FlexRay protocols and

applications, embedded networks, RFID, NFC and color display resolution, in French, English,

Spanish and Korean (published respectively by Dunod, John Wiley, Paraninfo, and Arcon

Publishers).

In 2007, Dominique Paret co-founded FILRFID (F
ed
eration des Industriels et Editeurs de

Logiciels pour RFID). In FILRFID the main mission and task is to establish relationships

between industries, universities, engineers, high schools, professional academies, industrial

and national research laboratories, national research agencies/ANR, and all French govern￾ment departments (Ministere de l’Enseignement et de la Recherche et Ministere de l’Industrie/

DGE), in order to help and promote RFID activities.

Dominique Paret is also an active member of EESTEL (Experts Europ
eens en Systemes de

Transactions Electroniques) and NFClub.

2009, France

DP-Consulting

dp-formations & dp-services

10, rue Georges Langrognet

- 92190 - Meudon -

France

phone: þ 33 (0)9.75.72.07.39

e-mail: [email protected]

xii About the Author