the.com/radio tags
tiny chips that turn silence into an inventory, whispering their identity to anyone who asks.
means small electronic tags using radio waves to transmit identifying data to a reader, without needing a battery in most cases.
from grew from IFF transponders built for WWII fighter planes to tell friend from foe before radar could, then shrank into commerce.
no battery neededpassive tags are powered by the reader's own signal
range varies wildlyfrom a few centimeters to over 100 meters
invented for waroriginated as identify friend or foe aircraft systems
walmart mandateforced suppliers to adopt them industry-wide in 2003
for instance
pet microchips — implanted rfid tags reunite millions of lost pets yearly
e-zpass — toll transponders read at highway speed since 1993
library book tags — replaced barcodes for self-checkout in thousands of libraries
passport chips — biometric rfid embedded in e-passports since 2006