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

Introduction - RFID

Four main elements: Tags, Readers, Antennas, and Network Systems

RFID – basic principles

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

Next speaker: Gustav Minnhagen

Health issues Active tags Solar tags

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

Active tags compared to passive tags

But… More expensive Bigger size Shorter life length Heavier

Active tags

For more stationary solutions Can be put into hand phones

Active tags – Uses

Freight Road tolls Assembly line Etc…

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)

Thank you four your attention

Smart Cards and RFID in Embedded Systems