Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tags consist of a microchip and a tiny antenna that transmits data from the chip to a reader. The reader is activated whenever the antenna comes into range and the data can be used to trigger an event – such as ringing up a purchase or ordering more stock.
The tags have already been used in retail. Tesco trialled the tags in Gillette razor blade packaging in its Cambridge store; Marks & Spencer tested them to assist with stock control; and, more significantly, Wal-Mart is demanding that all of its suppliers use RFID tags by 2005.
From a retail point of view, the tags offer a means of navigating an increasingly complex global supply chain, allowing companies to track their products from factory to distribution centre, from warehouse to sales floor. The tags, it is hoped, will allow better inventory management and lower operating costs.
In order to track products globally, a global tracking network must be set up, and this is the intention of EPCglobal, an international standards organisation. EPCglobal is run partly by the Uniform Code Council, which was instrumental in the setting up of the bar code technology familiar in shops today.
On Tuesday EPCglobal announced that it had taken a major step towards its goal, by appointing VeriSign as the body to be responsible for the Object Naming Service (ONS) root directory for the network. This works as follows:
Every company in the network will have an ONS server. This will direct computers seeking EPC (Electronic Product Code – the code contained in the tags) numbers to other servers containing product information. These second servers are called EPC Information Services. VeriSign will manage the ONS root directory – the controlling directory that will send computers to the individual company ONS.
Margaret Fitzgerald, President of EPCglobal, said
"To more effectively track pallets and cases of products throughout the supply chain, the EPC tag, when linked to the ONS, creates a unique identifier for each container. When looking for a partner to build this root directory, it was clear VeriSign, based on its background as the leading domain name registry for the millions of internet addresses in use around the globe, was the perfect partner for the job."