Using Smart Cards and RFID in Embedded Systems
Group members: FRANK, Daniel IM, Jae Hyoun KESAVAN, Kannan MINNHAGEN, Gustav
Speaker: Jae Hyoun Im
Introduction market Social Issues_____________________________________________________
Content by Kannan Kesavan: Tags Readers Frequencies
RFID
Tags(Object tagging)
Smart Card(Subject tagging)
supply chain, retail
(case-level tagging)
library,Baggage Control(item-level tagging)
EZ Link,toll-payment system
RFID
the market, the public, ...
"the difference between successful and shunned RFID applications turns on delivery of clear, tangible value to the average customer." *
"Make the perceived (and real) risk acceptable through convenience, variety and lower prices." *
3 ways of providing value to the customer *
– peace of mind– consumer
convenience– improved service
rejected projects
embraced projects
tesco EZ Link
benetton EZ Pass
metro toll-payment systems
* Bruce Eckfeldt
COMMUNICATIONS OF THE ACM
September 2005/Vol. 48, No. 9
social issue - “they cansee you, but you can see them.” *
"the core of the RFID debate is not about RF technology at all. it revolves around opposing viewpoints on political evolution and free societies" *
con: – advanced technologies become tools for oppressing human freedoms – "in this light, the progression from wire-tapping to tracing internet users by
IP address to tracking indiviuals with RF technology is a continuous and slippery slope towards lost anonymity and overnment control" *
pro: – most oppressive governments and least free societies are those with
the least technological sophistication. – "Technology is inherently liberating; information flows with less resistance.
despite individual opportunities for abuse with new technologies, on balance they essentially defend people from oppression rather than the other way around." *
* Aaron Weiss September 2003
Tags
• Types- Passive- Semi-active/semi-passive- Active
- Functionality - Read only (factory programmed)- Read/writeable (fully)- Partly programmable
- Memory- EPROM's (100 000 Writes)- FRAM: 100 times less power consumption
and 1000 faster than EEPROM- Static RAM (active RFID only)
- Capacity: - 1 Bit up to Kbytes
Frequencies
- Low frequency : 125-134KHz- High frequency : 13.56 MHz- UHF : 868MHz/902-928MHz- Microwaves : 2.4GHz/5.8GHz
Reader
• Reader devices can be invisibly embedded
• Walls• Door ways • Floor tiles • Carpeting• Floor mats• Vehicles• Roads• Side walks
• Counters• Shelving • Furniture's• Consumer products• Printers• Copiers• Vacuum cleaners• Hand held devises, e.g. cell phones
Health issues
Big commotion about hand phones being safe or not
Are the electromagnetic waves from the RFID readers hazardous to humans?
No tests available
Health issues
Can radio frequency waves cause cancer? Are there other biological effects that can be
caused from radio frequency energy?
Active tags compared to passive tags
Longer range Encryption Better noise immunity Higher data transmission More memory Reader: lower power
Solar tags
Infrared Clear path Works fine close to metal No batteries Encryption Faster communication than RFID Credit card sized Same uses as active tags
Next speaker: Daniel Frank
Reliability Security Designing an Embedded System using RFID:
– Selection Criteria of an RFID system– Competitive technologies– Benefits of RFID– Issues of RFID
Reliability
16-bit CRC Checksum used Solutions which support ECC or
other Error correcting techniques are available
Collision Prevention Typical error rate: 0% - 5% Case Study:
– reading 21 tags failed, out of more than 18,000 => reliability > 99,8%
Security and Privacy
Digital Signature Transponder (DST) from Texas Instruments (TI)
used to secure authentication:– newer-generation automobiles– electronic payment systems
Security key data:– unpublished, proprietary cipher– symmetric-key– 40 Bit Key
=> NOT SECURE AT ALL !
Security – State of the Art
Only symmetric encryption Triple DES encryption possible
– Takes 2-3 seconds for one read (including encryption)
96 Bit encryption (EM Microelectronic)– 20 – 40 Tags per second can be red
Whitepapers of AES-128 implementation on RFID
Selection Criteria of an RFID system
How often will the tag be read or written to? How important is the accuracy of the data that is being
stored in the tag? What is the distance needed between the tag and the
antenna? In which environment will the system
be used? How much data has to be
transferred at each location? Is the system central or
de-centralized control?
Competitive technologies
Bar Code– Labels nearly for free– Established– High reliability
Magnetic stripe card– Cheaper than RFID label– Established– High reliability
Chip Cards Video screening
– Technology is adapted to the labels
Benefits of RFID
No electrical contact No line of sight needed
– Tags can be embedded in objects, need to be identified
Fitting for challenging circumstances– operating temperature range: -40° to
+85°C
Remarkable speed (typical: <120 ms)
Issues
Different Systems which are not compatible
– Different Systems can disturb each other
No world-wide standard No tag disable standard Much more expensive than a
barcode Vulnerable (DOS)