wilamowski-b-m-irwin-j-d-industrial-communication-systems-2011

RFID Technology and Its Industrial Applications 9-11
the integration of other points in the chain of custody provide ever increasing levels of confidence
in the supply chain. While bar code solutions may cost less in the short term, there are a number of
shortcomings, compared with RFID, that limit their effectiveness over time. For example,
• RFID has the capacity to store larger amounts of information and can be read more faster than
bar codes (40-plus reads per second, compared with one to two for bar codes), and requires far
less human involvement.
• Bar codes require a direct line of sight to be read, while RFID tags do not.
• Bar code must be able to survive on multiple types of printed media in harsh conditions, sometimes
over long periods of time.
• Barcodes are easy to duplicate by using a simple inkjet printer.
• Barcodes cannot store the lifecycle information about any product but RFID can.
Thus, RFID technology has seen to be very effective in managing counterfeit pharmaceutical products
and preventing the entry of fake drugs in the supply chain.
9.5.2 Bank Notes
Other than pharmaceutical drugs, another areas where RFID anticounterfeiting technology is making
significant inroads is in securing currency or bills. Counterfeit euro bills were assumed to be
coming from Greece and other new member states in the European Union. In 2003, Greek authorities
dealt with 2411 counterfeiting cases and seized 4776 counterfeit banknotes, whereas Polish authorities
arrested a gang that circulated more than 1 million fake euros in the market [BIL06,JUN01]. To
address this problem of counterfeit currency, European central bank started looking at the possibility
of implementing RFID technology in euro bills and rolling out such bills by 2005. The main
question then was to decide on which bills to tag as it would not be cost effective to tag €5 or €10 euro
notes. So the most likely option was to tag high denomination notes like the €200 or €500 to deter
money laundering activities [AVO04,JUE03]. Some other challenges that need to be met would be
the privacy concerns; an RFID-embedded bank note can be used to track people who are carrying lot
of cash and would prove to be targets of robbery. Other than that, retailers could misuse this feature
by estimating the buying power of the customer and can device strategies to reduce the bargaining
power of the customer. These are some of the issues to be considered before implementing an
RFID-enabled bank note.
9.5.3 Secure Passports and Visas
Other than bank notes, travel documents like passports are now already using RFID chips that are
making the passports machine readable often termed as machine readable travel documents. Many
countries like Australia, United States, and European nations are already issuing passports with RFID
tag embedded within them. There is also been talks about implementing RFID visas to increase the
authenticity of the visas issued. In the past, many people have been fraudulently issuing visas for developed
nations. These activities can now be controlled by having an RFID-enabled visa [DIM07].
9.5.4 automobile Parts
Counterfeiting of automobile parts is also a big industry. It is estimated that on an average about 5%–10%
of all spare parts are counterfeits [LALK03]. Counterfeit products pose a big threat to the automobile
industry, since fake products not only eat up the revenue of the original manufacturer but it can also
increase the risk of warranty issues for the automobile manufacturer. Hence, the automobile industry is
now looking at the possibility of using RFID technology for tracking the automobile parts throughout
the supply chain to ensure that counterfeits do not enter the market.
© 2011 by Taylor and Francis Group, LLC