PolyID
By Andrew H. DentWe've all heard that embarrassing beep when leaving a store because the security tag on our purchase had not been removed. This technology has been around for some time and differs in shape, size, and identification method. The smallest and now most widely used are radio frequency identification (RFID) tags, which often look like spirals of silver foil on an adhesive label.
RFID tags were originally developed using silicon, but a new generation has emerged based on polymer semiconductors. This breakthrough has allowed the technology to overcome its biggest hurdle—cost. Producing them from plastics has allowed Germany's PolyIC, an electronic chip-printing company, to print tags in a high-volume, low-cost, production method—drastically cutting costs for both raw materials and processing. These flexible, thin RFID tags consist of roll-to-roll printed transponder chips based on the polymer semiconductor polythiophene and printed on flexible polyester film. During the process, the chips are mounted on a low-cost antenna and have a maximum read range of about three feet (one meter). The first production runs for these printed RFIDs are being used on tickets for transportation within Europe, with a wider rollout in the coming year. The ultimate goal is for it to reach the widescale adoption and virtually zero cost of the ubiquitous bar code.
Dr. Andrew H. Dent, PhD, is vice-president, Library & Materials Research at Material ConneXion, a leading global platform for material innovations and solutions
From BusinessWeek
Some technology is existed but not be wild used or applied, but that may make difference in our lives. This stuff is pretty practical and save money, and it's easy to produced. Imagine our future, everything could be possible for the new material invention.
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