The Ways Products Tracked Through The Supply

RFID TAGS Introduction Over time, the ways products have been tracked through the supply chain have changed just as technology is constantly progressing. Yet, there are still constraints to improve the methods of tracking and shipping due to the lack of technology in these fields. Bar codes have helped but still need human interference. Many companies are starting to turn to radio frequency identification tags. RFID tags can help companies with tracking and shipment of any product and reduce time to improve customer satisfaction. Wolff, 2001) Companies such as IBM who are producing the tags have started to think of ideas to revolutionize this plan. The RFID tags can help track products as they enter and leave warehouses, and can speed up the shipping process. They can be put into different products and even use them in such ways as at the grocery store instead of having cashiers and cash registers. (Wolff, 2001) The superstore, JC Penney, is interested in taking advancements with the RFID tags. These tags are programmable and cannot get damaged like barcodes can.

In the 21st century, we are constantly moving forward with such innovations. The RFID tags are currently in use by some companies already, and being modified by others for their particular needs. These tags could open doors for many new inventions and help us progress into a faster-moving and progressing world. Background Radio frequency identification has been said to go as far back as World War II. Countries were using it for tracking planes and other means of transportation by radar. The major super powers of World War II such as America, Japan, and Germany, all had been using this technology.

Germany was the first to discover that the sound wave would change depending on how their pilots came back to base. This helped them determine whether enemies or their own pilots were coming into their territory. (Roberti) From this, scientists kept progressing with different types of radiofrequency tags to identify sole objects. From the advancement in this form of technology, anti-theft tags were created, which sends a signal when it is not paid for and someone tries to leave the store with this item. The US government has also been working with RFID tags with tracking nuclear supplies, along with rucks to help while delivering different things. (Roberti) The tags are being used today in major companies such as Wal-Mart, to track products throughout the supply chain. EZPASS is probably the best example of usage of the RFID tags. Mobil Exxon currently uses RFID tags with their “speed pass. ” This speed pass allows customers to buy petrol without using any method of currency. The RFID transponder takes the identification number of the customer and then charges the amount to an existing credit card. Roberti) The RFID are in use majorly today and are going to keep advancing through time. Potential Benefits The expansion of the radiofrequency in and of itself is a huge accomplishment for society, and all around the world. These tags can help with tracking products, quicker payments, decrease waiting for customers, healthcare, medicine, and so much more. EZPASS uses these tags already and decreases travel time because they have “EZPASS only” lanes when paying tolls. The RFID tags can be smaller than someone’s fingernail but can still be tracker anywhere.

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Hopefully over time, these tags will take the place of all barcodes and will not need human interference. Grocery stores can use these tags in their products to just bill you through the scanner as you leave the store, which IBM suggests. You can see a commercial of this in an IBM commercial for their RFID tags and what they can bring. That would just be the beginning, since now they are suggesting injecting patients with RFID during their surgical implants to detect healing processes. Innovapaedics' long-term (approximately five-year) goal is to offer a ‘Smart Implant’ solution that would include RFID tags and sensors permanently attached to implants. After an item is implanted into a patient, its RFID sensors would detect pressure and temperature changes, among other events, in order to track a patient's healing process, as well as the device's condition, and transmit that information to a reader. ” (Swedberg, 2003) Legal and Ethical Issues/Security Concerns Many of the problems with the RFID tags is the privacy issues and concerns that may come into play.

These tags could be used to benefit everyone but could also be used to harm. If they are going to be used in more and more products and maybe even into people for health-related purposes, this raises concerns for governments across the globe, as well as their citizens. Such worries could be the fear of data being intercepted from a third party, or the rights of a person being violated by accessing private information. (Legal issues) The tags could be used to spread viruses, breaching confidential data, or to gain unfair advantages in business to get a lead on the competition. Legal issues) Tags could also be used to track people with the tagged items, which could lead them to credit accounts and help with fraud. (Legal issues) Also, the tags could help lead to corruption and destruction of one whole RFID network if it gains access to one tag and breaks in. If these RFID tags are injected into people for surgical purposes or for other things in the future, can they get viruses do to the computer chip? These are all issues that need to be resolved or find consequences for such things. Social Problems Many of the problems with the RFID tags all relate back to privacy.

These tags can be tracked at great distances, while sometime the user of the product has no knowledge of the tag being there. These chips can be in phones, as well as other electrical items. With the knowledge of these tags, people can stalk other people if they gain access to the RFID network for that item and tag number on the item being utilized by someone else. As stated here, “The concern increases as information related to a variety of objects becomes linkable to the identity of their users thus adding data of a personal nature to the data that is being stored and exchanged.

In addition, if such data is used to create profiles their use may limit the freedom of choice of users and lead to opaque decision making about individuals. ” (Royer) This shows that there is a way to access personal information which could create major problems with identity theft and other things alike. These tags, when implanted into a human’s body, could have a defect or change a person’s nervous system, or chemical balance. This could lead to different perception, different thought process, or could seriously injure a human or cause them to do something irrational which they wouldn’t normally do.

Conclusion The radiofrequency identification tags can be used to benefit the way the world works through the supply chain, and much more. This could literally change the way we live day to day life if we allow it. The tags are already being used by EZPASS and at Mobil Exxon stations. If funded right, these could be used for products in our grocery stores so shoppers don’t have to wait on line to pay for groceries. These types of chips and tags are already being used for cows and pets when they go astray, so their owners can find them with a form of a transponder.

There are also problems with these tags that someone could put a virus in place and manage to destroy the network and hack into people’s personal information. This could also be utilized for terrorism with different countries such as in the past with the transportation of the nuclear materials. A lot of work needs to be done but with the right resources and workers to put this into action, they can use the tags to help the world become a more convenient place. References Legal issues ; concerns- rfid. (n. d. ). Retrieved from http://ukrfid. innoware. o. uk/rfid_legal_issues_;_concerns I chose this source because it spoke of all the different legal issues and concerns of the RFID tags. It explained the different ways which I was unaware of that helped me further understand the severity of the things that could go wrong with the RFID tags. Pierce, A. (2004). Radio frequency identification tags. Tech Directions, 63(6), 11-11+. Retrieved from http://search. proquest. com/docview/218522558? accountid=14541 I picked this source because it gave more information on the radio frequency identification tags.

It helped show me the different benefits of the RFID tags and what they can be used for. Roberti, M. (n. d. ). The history of rfid technology. Retrieved from http://www. rfidjournal. com/article/view/1338 I chose this source because it told me all about the history of radar and how it progressed to become what we have today and all the different inventions along the way. It showed how the radar started around World War II and how it came to where we are. Royer, D. (n. d. ). D7. 7: Rfid, profiling, and ami.

Retrieved from http://www. fidis. net/resources/deliverables/profiling/d770/doc/24/ This source gave the information of how the RFID tags can have different negative effects and what they could be. It gave many examples of the different types of problems there can be. Swedberg, C. (2003, February 5). Retrieved from http://www. rfidjournal. com/article/view/10391 Wolff, J. A. (2001). Rfid tags – an intelligent bar code replacement. Retrieved from ftp://ftp. software. ibm. com/software/pervasive/info/tech/gsoee200. pdf

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