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How To Make Your Own iPhone RFID Reader
andylim writes "It's been rumoured for some time now that Apple will include RFID technology in a future iPhone. An RFID-packing iPhone could interact with various objects including opening doors and it could even be used in shops to register items at the checkout. Beating Apple to the RFID punch, last year a company called Wireless Dynamics announced an iPhone RFID accessory called the iCarte, but if you'd rather make your own reader then you'll be interested to know how a research assistant at University College London has managed to build his own RFID iPhone accessory."
On a side topic, my company is looking for a source of low-cost, small RFID chips. They should be perhaps 1 centimeter (about 1/3 inch) square. Each must have a unique code, but they don't need to be re-programmable. We haven't been able to find a supplier.
The iCarte reeks of vaporware. Show me a video of it in action, show me a datasheet not riddled with buzzwords. Hell, show a tentative price or release date. How would you program it? How would you take the pay and go info off of a debit/credit card? Also, if it is so easy to take that info off of a card, how worried should consumers be about their security?
post pages with the latest up to date technical specs on rfid range capabilities?
i remember years ago reading something on 'backscatter' technology which allowed for better range, but my question is mainly regarding range possibilities... like, can you make the equivalent of the 'bluetooth sniper rifle' for reading rfid at extended ranges?
In the 4ed Shadowrun setting computing and wireless communications are ubiquitous, and every legal person has to have a "commlink", a small personal computer broadcasting his/her personal ID at all times. Nonpersons, such as the player characters, has to have a fake ID or be arrested on the spot. Due to the large amount of computing power available, the only real use for personal high-performance computing is breaching computer security (it makes more sense in the fluff...) - the most popular solution is thus to have one cheap commlink with a fake ID, and one illegal either hidden on the PCs person or implanted in the skull as cyberware.
Emotions! In your brain!
Ya know, cause I like hats. And doors piss me off when they don't open.
Congratulations to Apple for embracing an infomercial sales pitch -- it opens doors! it can bake a cheesecake perfect every time! do you want an omelet?! presto!
I scream. You scream. I assume that means we're both acquainted with the problem. We proceed.
Suica (or Pasmo) is the RFID system for trains passes in Japan. Mobile phones have had them built in since at least 2007.
And a reader is not the same as having an RFID token. The system is asymmetric.
Nokia has had a few RFID phones since 2006. This is not a new invention.
I don't read your sig. Why are you reading mine?
You're telling me that a small general purpose computer(albeit a deliberately locked down one) with a serial port can be connected to a variety of serial peripherals, including RFID readers? Somebody fetch the smelling salts, I feel faint.
Sarcasm aside, of course, this seems like one of those situations where the hardware is utterly uninteresting; but the applications, once the boring hardware is broadly available could well be quite interesting, and possibly in unexpected ways(though, with RFID, not necessarily the good kind of unexpected).
Being just a concept so far, I believe that it should be referred to as ideaware.
Or would that be iDeaware?
Features
Near Field Communication (NFC)
NFCIP-1 and ISO 18092 compliant
Supports contactless payment
Peer to peer communication
Data exchange speed up to 424 kbps
Radio Frequency Identification (RFID)
ISO 14443A/B compliant
ISO 15693 compliant
Supports NXP MIFARE®
Supports NXP MIFARE DESFire ®
Supports I-CODE® SLI
Supports Texas Instrument Tag-it(TM) HF-I
Read, write and search 13.56 MHz HF RFID tags
SmartCard
Integrated SAM (Secure Access Module)
SmartCard compliant JCOP OS
NXP MIFARE® Classic 1K tag emulation
iPhone
Made for iPod (MFI) accessory
Supports iPhone 3G or iPhone 3GS
Charge iPhone and iTune Sync via mini-USB
Compact and Reliable Snap-On Design
Extends iPhone length by 16.5mm (0.65")
62.1 x 26.5 x 12.3 mm (2.4" x 1.0" x 0.5")
Available in black or white color
Read/Write Range
Up to 4.0 cm (1.5") for NFC
Up to 5.0 cm (2.0") for ISO 14443A/B
Up to 6.0 cm (2.5") for ISO 15693
Range depends on tag configuration, orientation
and environment
Low Power Consumption
90 mA (typical) RFID Read/Write mode
5 mA (typical) Contactless Payment mode
Features and specifications subject to change. V0.4
Mit der Dummheit kämpfen Götter selbst vergebens
Japanese phones have already included the RFID technology for many years.. We are in the dark age!
Thanks. That's interesting. However, the smallest RFID tags they have are 1.5 inches x 0.89 inches.
It seems that the limiting factor in RFID adoption worldwide is that all the makers are trying to serve companies who are using RFID tags for large boxes of inventory. There don't seem to be any forward-thinking manufacturers.
Apparently the manufacturers want to charge $1 per tag and want the users to throw the tags away after use.
We need small tags with a limited range. We need each tag to have a unique random number code. We don't need to be able to change the codes.
What sort of RFID are they trying to implement ?
If they want the iPhone to open doors and such, then simply stick an RFID chip somewhere in or on the iPhone and be done with it.
I mean, the chips are so small, the end user can do this with very little fuss. Heck if you can stick an RFID tag in your dog, cat, wallet, keyring, credit card, and even yourself, well then this is really a non newsworthy item.
If they want to read RFID tags, then that's a different matter all together.
There are many RFID standards, as well as different freqs. On top of all this, there are going to be range issues,
(I.E. you wont be able to have a huge antenna inside an iPhone) so thats going to limit your range to around 5cm for reading tags).
And then what is the average iPhone user going to use this for ?
I can think of quite a few applications for this, but I dont see businesses shelling out for iPhones to read RFID tags, when there are purpose built reaers on the market that sell for a fraction of the cost of an iPhone
Before I get too mean, I should offer up that I admin databases. And if everything is a nail to a man with a hammer, everything is a hacking threat to a DBA.
I've seen too many people too gullible let strangers do too many things with their credentials, phones and credit cards to think twice about whether users should be hiking around with a security stick in their pocket -- the answer is a resounding NO, NO, NO, NO-NO-NO, NONONONO, NOOOOOOOO!!!!"
I scream. You scream. I assume that means we're both acquainted with the problem. We proceed.
I should have said also that we need to be able to re-use the tags.
That's excellent. They're the right size, the smallest I've seen. However, in 10,000 quantities they cost $2.65. I'm surprised they are so expensive. That's more than the cost of an entire 8088 microprocessor.
We don't need a lot of functionality. We just need the RFID chip to say, "Hi, I'm 5633984." Or, whatever number was permanently assigned.
If you are interested in quantities that high talk directly with the people at TI they will get you in touch with your district rep. Digikey specializes in lower quantity sales so they aren't the best to deal with if you are ordering over a thousand.
One of the main things stopping me from getting an iPhone is that the normal Japanese phones have "seifu keitai" (wallet phone) features, which the iPhone doesn't. I use this all the time at stores, and for the train. If iPhone implements the RFID as Sony's "Felica" brand, then it will be compatible with Suica (the train pass) and everything else used by these phones.
If they don't, well then... not so useful.
btw the term "RFID" bothers me. I originally thought that referred to some specific standard (which it seems to, since it has version numbers), but then I have seen it used for any kind of RF tags. There is a very big difference between the passive anti-theft tags, and f.e. the felica chips which have encryption and read/write built in.
An RFID reader on an iPhone, and RFID credit cards being hacked since 2008, wonder if someone will make a jailbroken only app for getting the information? Not like people think twice when they see someone playing with a iPhone in public. (while the video shows that the card pretty much needs to touch the card, the tech is getting better last I heard so the distance is getting further away and still getting the information. Plus set the program up, put your phone in your pocket and ride the bus/trains during rush hour, that would get some even with those short distances since your pretty much side by side.)
Attention... all grammer nazi"s! Is they're anything; wrong with: my post,
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Thanks very much. That has likely saved me many hours of looking. I had looked before and called several companies, and gotten no help.
First, I thought they were mentioning the iCartel accessory for the iPhone. I always wanted a device I could attach to my iPhone to go around using anti-competitive measures to regulate store prices. RFID reader? Not quite as exciting.
Thanks very much. I will investigate.
Yes, I fancy the idea of having RFID readers in the hands of millions and credit card / biometric passport reading software right there at the app-store.
No irony. There's NOTHING that makes (insecure) RFID vanish faster from cc/passports!