Radio Frequency Identification or RFID as it is called, works by allowing data to be transferred from an RFID tag to a reader. RFID, with its ability to locate anything, has been used in a vast number of fields that you may have never even thought of. Here’s a list of RFID applications:
1. Set your style Have you ever heard of a smart fitting room? If your answer is no, it’s time you know more about it. When you are buying a dress, most of your time is wasted in finding out if you’ll look good in it. Smart fitting rooms can help you solve the problem. The RFID powered kiosks in the room will identify the dress and give you the product data as well as suggestions. You can also go through the alternatives. Apart from that, they also give suggestions on the accessories that go with the dress, be it handbags or ties. These smart fitting rooms would help you to define your style as well as save your time.
2. Find golf balls Every golf player deals with the chaos of finding their golf balls, once hitting it. Well, no more headaches!! RFID golf balls can help you there. RFID golf balls contain tiny RFID chips inserted in them, making it easy for players to locate the ball, using a handheld RFID scanner. With the help of the scanner, it is possible to find lost balls from a distance of 30 to 100 feet from where they were hit. This can surely help you in saving your time and money.
3. Improve your Supply Chain Being an owner of a store or a shopping market is not at all easy, especially, when it comes to dealing with manufacturing, shipping and distribution. Sometimes a delay can happen or a product can lose quality. This would in turn affect the reputation of your store. RFID can help you here. With the help of RFID, you can get data real time on the status of individual commodities being imported and take instant actions in case of errors. This can help you to increase efficiency with less errors and improved quality.
4. Track vehicles RFID joins hands with GPS here to track vehicles. This application would come in handy especially in the case of school buses. The RFID school bus tracker by Edsys is one example. Parents and teachers can ensure safety of students using RFID tags. These tags can be attached to the students’ ID cards and students can swipe those tags once they enter the bus. Parents/school authorities in turn get notified via their phones about the whereabouts of students and the vehicle, thus putting an end to safety concerns.
5. No more cheating There are lots of gamblers, who even after being honest in their game, had lost tragically. Cheating is a common activity in casinos and sometimes, it’s difficult to find out. Well, it is easier now with RFID-enabled betting chips. With the help of RFID betting chips, it is easy to monitor each individual, in terms of betting patterns and other improper gaming methods.
6. No more shopping chaos Finding items you need is a huge task when it comes to shopping malls. You have to take the effort to search each and every department or may be ask the staff there, every time you need something. “Smart shopping carts” are on their way to help you out. These carts download your shopping list digitally and RFID guides you to the locations where the items are. This can also help you to easily check out, not having to stay in the long queue, missing almost half the things you really need. With these smart shopping carts, you can save your time, energy and money.
7. Healthcare made efficient News of patients being wrongly operated or equipment being left inside the patients are very common these days. Doctors are in a rush with increase in number of patients and sometimes do not even know any details of a patient once in the operation theatre. An RFID chip on the patient’s hospital bracelet can help in such situations. Also embedding RFID chips in hospital equipments can prevent cases of accidentally leaving equipments inside operated patients. Including RFID in the health department can also help in an efficient healthcare management system, managing traffic in hospitals and monitoring equipment.
8. Interactive marketing RFID in marketing is not very much familiar to people. But it has its own benefits in many ways. RFID in marketing can add to a certain level of interaction with consumers. Than the usual way of giving a message to the consumers, RFID in marketing encourage customers to engage in the brand. This helps customers to know the products better and even give feedback.
9. Track IT assets IT assets like server blades, laptops and tablets are very important for a company. They may even contain the confidential data of a company. To prevent them from going to wrong hands, IT asset tags can be used, which work using RFID. This also helps the IT team of a company in efficient record keeping and to ensure that nothing is misplaced.
10. No more swiping Tired of waiting in the queue to swipe your ticket passes in an amusement park or a stadium? RFID-enabled tickets prove be a solution. These tickets help in keeping track of the movements of each individual. The RFID-enabled tickets tend to be advantageous in parks in terms of putting an end to swiping for each ride, saving wait times and reducing employee costs. There have been several incidents of bomb explosions in stadiums. The RFID-enabled tickets can be useful there as well as it helps to keep track of people.
11. Track your pets We come across at least one column of missing pets in newspapers everyday. RFID is an effective solution to find lost pets. An embedded RFID chip or a collar with an RFID tag can help you to easily track your pets.
12. RFID and sports In marathons and other races which involve a large group of athletes, there are often chances to have disputes regarding race timings. Real Time tracking devices such as RFID shoe tags are attached to the athletes, thus helping the authorities to record the timings of each athlete as they pass the antennas. This has been proven to be an efficient technology in accurate recording of race timings thus helping athletes to analyse their performance.
Well, the list does not end here. With the invention of new RFID applications, it is a fact that the RFID technology is here to stay.
