title: Jacques Villeneuve

text: He decided to remain at BAR for the 2003 season, and was partnered with Button. Villeneuve's BAR 005 car had a more powerful but bulky Honda engine. He initially had a poor relationship with Button, not speaking to him and saying that Button "should be in a boy band". Their relationship did not improve after the season-opening when Villeneuve was due to make a pit stop but drove an additional lap when Button was due to make his, leaving Button stationary behind Villeneuve. Though he blamed it on "radio problems". Button and Richards hinted their disbelief in his execution. Villeneuve was outperformed by his teammate and retired eight times due to mechanical faults. He finished sixth at both the and the . Before the season-ending , Villeneuve was informed by Richards he was no longer needed. He was replaced by test driver Takuma Sato. He was 16th in the Drivers' Championship with 6 points.


title: Jacques Villeneuve

text: Villeneuve took a sabbatical after BAR released him. He thought of taking up NASCAR as a new challenge, but no teams approached him. After speaking to senior officials from BAR and Williams, Villeneuve believed that they would want to resign him to their respective teams, but neither move occurred. When he realised no competitive team would employ him, he and Pollock met Sauber team owner Peter Sauber in Hinwil in mid-2004. Impressed with Sauber's professionalism, he signed a two-year contract the next month to drive for Sauber from the 2005 season and help them attract new sponsors and partners.


title: Jacques Villeneuve

text: Before his tenure at Sauber began, Villeneuve was employed by Briatore to help Renault claim second from BAR in the World Constructors' Championship by scoring the maximum number of points in the 2004 season's final three races following the dismissal of Jarno Trulli for performing poorly. Sauber was comfortable in letting Villeneuve drive for Renault because both teams used Michelin tyres. Driving the R24 car, he finished all three events but under-performed and was lapped each time. Villeneuve scored no points and was unclassified in the Drivers' Championship.


title: Jacques Villeneuve

text: At Sauber, he used a C24 chassis and was teammates with Felipe Massa. A lack of both pre-season testing and money for car development caused Villeneuve to have a difficult handling car. He did not have a good relationship with the team because he was not allowed to give feedback on car setup due to Willy Rampf's influence. Villeneuve finished a season-high fourth at the and scored more points in eighth at the and sixth at the . He was 14th in the Drivers' Championship with 9 points.


title: Jacques Villeneuve

text: For the 2006 championship, he stayed at the renamed BMW Sauber after BMW purchased the team. Nick Heidfeld was his teammate. The atmosphere within the team made Villeneuve content, and he was happy with BMW's involvement. He found the less electronically dependent and less refined aerodynamically F1.06 car more driveable. Team principal Mario Theissen criticised Villeneuve for not achieving decent results, thus failing to please BMW's board of directors. Despite retiring three times, he accumulated 7 points from the first 11 races, ranking him 15th in the Drivers' Championship. At the , Villeneuve sustained muscle pains in an accident exiting a corner. Shortly afterward, Theissen terminated his contract and replaced him with Robert Kubica. He did not want to be part of a shootout between himself and Kubica, and saw his release as a precursor to his future, saying "Screw this, It's time to get on with the rest of my life." Villeneuve twice failed to return to F1, first with Stefan Grand Prix in the 2010 season, then with his team in partnership with Durango for the following year.


title: Jacques Villeneuve

text: He explored NASCAR after exiting F1, talking to Roush Racing owner Jack Roush who agreed to help Villeneuve obtain Truck Series experience before progressing to the Busch Series in 2007 on the condition of a sponsorship agreement. Before that, he made his 24 Hours of Le Mans debut with Peugeot in the 2007 edition informing team manager Serge Saulnier that he wanted to complete the Triple Crown of Motorsport. Sharing the Le Mans Prototype 1 (LMP1)-class No. 7 Peugeot 908 HDi FAP car with Marc Gené and Nicolas Minassian, Villeneuve retired after 338 laps with engine injection trouble. He entered into a partnership with Bill Davis Racing (BDR) to enter the 2007 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series' last seven events in its No. 27 Toyota Tundra in anticipation of racing full-time in 2008. Villeneuve finished outside the top ten in all seven events for 42nd overall with 615 points. That same year, he drove two races in the Nextel Cup Series (the UAW-Ford 500 at Talladega Superspeedway and the Checker Auto Parts 500 at Phoenix) in BDR's No. 27 Toyota, finishing 21st and 41st respectively.


title: Jacques Villeneuve

text: He and Pollock agreed to end their working relationship in early 2008, and Barry Green began managing him. That February, BDR released Villeneuve, who failed to qualify for the Daytona 500 of the renamed Sprint Cup Series after causing a multi-car accident in the Gatorade Duels. Two months later, he raced the final two rounds of the inaugural season of the Middle East and Southeast Asian-based stock car Speedcar Series at the Bahrain International Circuit and the Dubai Autodrome. Villeneuve then won the 2008 1000 km of Spa (part of the Le Mans Series) for Peugeot with Gené and Minassian in his first race victory for 11 years. Although he finished second in the 24 Hours of Le Mans, sharing Peugeot's No. 7 LMP1 entry with Gené and Minassian, he was released a month later because Peugeot wanted a French driver. In August, Villeneuve signed a contract to make his Nationwide Series debut driving Braun Racing's No. 32 Toyota Camry in the NAPA Auto Parts 200 at Montreal's Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, finishing 16th. He also came 16th at the Autódromo Oscar y Juan Gálvez round of Top Race V6 Argentina aboard Oro Racing Team's No. 27 Volkswagen Passat TRV6.


title: Jacques Villeneuve

text: Villeneuve returned to the Speedcar Series in the 2008–09 season driving for Durango. Competing in five races, he finished in the top ten three times, scoring seven points for 11th in the Drivers' Championship. In mid-2009, Villeneuve partook in the Tide 250 at Autodrome Saint-Eustache and the GP3R 100 at Circuit Trois-Rivières of the NASCAR Canadian Tire Series for the Jacombs Racing Team in its No. 7 Ford Fusion, finishing fourth at Trois-Rivieres. For the first and only time, Villeneuve entered the Spa 24 Hours in 2009. He shared Gravity Racing International's G2 category No. 118 Mosler MT900R GT3 with Vincent Radermecker, Loris de Sordi and Ho-Pin Tung. The trio failed to finish. He drove the No. 27 Mercedes TRV6 at the Interlagos Circuit and Autódromo Oscar y Juan Gálvez rounds of Top Race V6 Argentina, achieving a best finish of 13th in Buenos Aires. He made one appearance in the 2009 Nationwide Series, finishing fourth at the NAPA Auto Parts 200 in Braun Racing's No. 32 car.


title: Jacques Villeneuve

text: In 2010, Villeneuve ran the Nationwide Series road courses at Road America, Watkins Glen and Montreal in Braun Racing's No. 32 vehicle. He finished eighth at Watkins Glen before claiming third at Montreal, where he started second. In mid-season, Villeneuve entered the Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway finishing 29th in Braun Racing's No. 32 car. Villeneuve joined Rod Nash Racing as Paul Dumbrell's international co-driver in its No. 55 Ford FG Falcon for the Gold Coast 600 double header in October 2010 and sought advice from driver Marcos Ambrose on touring car racing. He finished 22nd in the first race and fifth in the second. Ford motorsport manager Chris Styring considered Villeneuve for the Bathurst 1000, the L&H 500 and the Gold Coast 600 in the 2011 International V8 Supercars Championship, but Villeneuve's financial demands were too great for Ford.


title: Jacques Villeneuve

text: He drove the Road America and Montreal road course races of the 2011 NASCAR Nationwide Series for Penske Racing in its No. 22 Dodge Challenger in lieu of Brad Keselowski. Villeneuve finished the Road America race third and qualified on pole position for the Montreal event but finished 27th despite leading 29 laps. In August 2011, he joined Shell V-Power Racing for the Stock Car Corrida do Milhão for the 2011 championship of Stock Car Brasil despite concerns about adapting to his car. Driving the No. 27 Peugeot 408, Villeneuve qualified 27th and finished 18th. He was employed by Penske to drive its No. 22 car at the Road America and Montreal road course races in the 2012 NASCAR Nationwide Series. Villeneuve finished sixth at Road America and third at Montreal. During the 2012 International V8 Supercars Championship, he filled in for the injured Greg Murphy for three rounds in Kelly Racing's No. 51 Holden Commodore, finishing no higher than 24th. He finished seventh sharing Vita4One's No. 34 BMW Z4 GT3 with Jos Verstappen at the City Challenge Baku GT event in October.


title: Jacques Villeneuve

text: When Villeneuve expressed interest in the International V8 Supercars Championship, he was considered for a full-time seat at Kelly Racing in the 2013, but no agreement was reached. For the first and only time, he partook in the Le Mans double header counting towards the 2013 season of the FFSA GT Championship, sharing the No. 27 Sport Garage-entered Ferrari 458 Italia GT3 with Éric Cayrolle. The duo finished 11th in the first race and retired from the next. Midway through the season, Villeneuve was hired by car owner James Finch to drive the Toyota/Save Mart 350 at Sonoma Raceway in the Sprint Cup Series for Phoenix Racing in its No. 51 Chevrolet SS, finishing 41st due to mechanical trouble after 19 laps. Later that year, he finished fifth in the Grand Prix de Trois Rivieres (part of the Canadian Tire Series) in 22 Racing's Dodge Challenger.


title: Jacques Villeneuve

text: In 2014, he signed to drive an Albatec Racing-prepared Peugeot 208 Supercar part-time in the FIA World Rallycross Championship's inaugural season. Villeneuve chose to do rallycross because he felt it was exciting for both drivers and spectators. In seven races, Villeneuve scored eight points for 37th in the Drivers' Championship. He was released before the season ended due to non-supportive statements he made concerning his team and rallycross. Villeneuve entered the Indianapolis 500 for the first time in 19 years, driving Schmidt Peterson Hamilton Motorsports' No. 5 Dallara DW12-Honda third car entry. Though he had not planned to return to American open-wheel racing, he changed his mind after the 2012 introduction of a new car and engine formula. He qualified 27th and finished 14th. In August, Villeneuve finished 24th in Jacombs' No. 7 Dodge at Canadian Tire Series' Grand Prix de Trois Rivieres.


title: Jacques Villeneuve

text: He accepted an invitation to enter 2015 Stock Car Brasil's season-opening Autódromo Internacional Ayrton Senna round alongside Zonta in Shell Racing's No. 10 Chevrolet Sonic, placing 21st. Villeneuve signed a contract to replace Heidfeld and partner with Stéphane Sarrazin at Venturi Grand Prix in the 2015–16 season of the all-electric Formula E series. Villeneuve had observed Formula E intently throughout 2014, admiring its bumpy city tracks. Guido Pastor called him to test a car, after which he got selected to drive. Villeneuve finished outside the top ten in the first two races and failed to start the Punta del Este ePrix due to an accident during qualifying. His relationship with Venturi cooled thereafter and they agreed to terminate their working relationship early in January 2016. Villeneuve signed a one-race agreement to return to rallycross in the 2018 season. He drove a Subaru Rally Team USA-entered WRX STi Supercar at the World RX of Canada (part of the Americas Rallycross Championship). He failed to qualify for the final following two accidents sustained during the second semi-final.


title: Jacques Villeneuve

text: For the 2019 season, Villeneuve shared Scuderia Baldini 27's GT3 Pro-class No. 27 Ferrari 488 GT3 Evo with Giancarlo Fisichella and Stefano Gai in the Italian GT Championship, finishing fourth at the 3 Hours of Misano and second at the 3 Hours of Vallelunga. He raced as a guest driver at the Ring Knutstorp and Karlskoga Motorstadion rounds of the Porsche Carrera Cup Scandinavia in a MTech Competition-entered Porsche 911 GT3 Cup car, placing in the top ten in the second race of both rounds. That year, he made his debut in NASCAR Whelen Euro Series in the Elite 1 Division. Villeneuve drove the No. 32 Go Fas Racing Chevrolet, finishing the season eighth in points with 431 scored, two pole positions and seven top-tens. For the 2020 season, he entered that year's Whelen Euro Series with FEED Vict Racing, a team owned by him and Patrick Lemarié. Driving four rounds in the No. 5 car, he achieved two top fives for 104 points (21st overall) in the Elite 1 Division. He drove Academy Motorsport's No. 5 car in the 2021 Whelen Euro Series, achieving his first two series victories in both races of the season's final round at Vallelunga, and scoring 331 points for ninth in the points standings with two wins and four top-ten finishes. He left the series after the season was over to focus on his F1 commentary commitments.


title: Jacques Villeneuve

text: For 2022, Villeneuve returned to the NASCAR Cup Series as a part-time driver of the non-chartered No. 27 Team Hezeberg Ford. He aimed to assist Team Hezeberg in the launch of its Cup Series programme and he consented to assist with their effort in the Daytona 500. Villeneuve qualified for the race as of the fastest of the open non-charter teams; starting from 40th, he finished the race in 22nd after an early-race half-spin and a subsequent collision with Tyler Reddick. In August, he failed to start the NASCAR Pinty's Series' Grand Prix de Trois-Rivières in the No. 7 Dumoulin Competition-prepared Dodge after accepting an offer by Festidrag Développement president Martin D'Anjou to enter the race.


title: Jacques Villeneuve

text: Villeneuve began writing lyrics while he was driving in Japan, and purchased a guitar in 1996. When he became uncertain whether he would remain at Sauber for the 2006 F1 season in November 2005, he elected to rent a professional recording studio in Paris in order to better hear his music. Travelling to England to record with the Tenebrae Choir, Villeneuve recorded nearly every day for a month before stopping to prioritise motor racing. That same year, he released his debut French single, "Accepterais-tu", and an acoustic rock album "Private Paradise" with 13 songs (nine in French and four in English) in 2007. Six songs each were written by Villeneuve and his friends; he also performed a cover of "Women Come, Women Go" by Gazebo. Villeneuve collaborated with vocalists Steve Smith and Amélie Veille. The album debuted at No. 49 on the Quebec pop charts and received negative media reviews. It sold 233 copies in Quebec and 836 in North America.


title: Jacques Villeneuve

text: He was a guest on the 6 June 1995 and 2 June 1998 episodes of the "Late Show with David Letterman". Villeneuve made a cameo appearance as a racing driver in the 2001 film "Driven". He carried the Olympic torch in Old Montreal during the 2010 Winter Olympics torch relay in December 2009. Villeneuve also carried the Olympic flag at the opening ceremony. Villeneuve was employed by Disney France in late 2010, spending two days recording the French-language voice of a racing announcer for the 2011 Pixar animated film "Cars 2". He analysed the for the British television channel Sky Sports F1. Since 2013, Villeneuve has commentated for the pay-TV services Sky Sport in Italy and Canal+ in France. He co-designed the Area 27 racing track in Okanagan, British Columbia.


title: Jacques Villeneuve

text: He was engaged firstly to the Montreal college student Sandrine Gros D'Aillon, then to Australian pop singer Dannii Minogue and later American ballerina Ellen Green. However, Villeneuve's first marriage was to Parisian Johanna Martinez in May 2006. They had two children before divorcing in June 2009. In June 2012, he married the Brazilian Camila Andrea López Lillo, with whom he has two children. Villeneuve has a son with his current girlfriend Giulia Marra. Since January 2017, Revenu Québec has pursued Villeneuve for $1.7 million in unpaid taxes after doing an audit of his business activities from 2010 to 2012. The October 2021 release of the Pandora Papers revealed that he had set up offshore companies in the tax-free jurisdictions of The Bahamas and the British Virgin Islands in the 1990s and early 2000s to receive endorsement and income and to avoid paying Canadian income tax.


title: Jacques Villeneuve

text: Journalist Gerald Donaldson describes Villeneuve as "engagingly eccentric, opinionated and outspoken" and one who "defied convention and challenged authority, saying exactly what he thought in an era when drivers were expected to express only sweet-talking platitudes." He was popular with the European press for his reliance to speak his mind in a time of political correctness. He publicly bemoaned F1's commercialised and commodified image, the sport's structure, focus on cheaper, younger, corporate groomed drivers, and the manufacturing of driver personalities by corporations so as not to impugn their reputation by drivers voicing their thoughts and opinions through the media. Villeneuve frequently dyed his hair in various colours and sported grunge street wear. His behaviour earned him multiple cautions from F1's governing body, the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile, for bringing the series into disrepute. However, Max Mosley, the association's president, commented that Villeneuve's controversies would benefit him when he was no longer successful.


title: Jacques Villeneuve

text: Villeneuve's decision to be independent as much as possible from media relations to avoid over promotion was endorsed by Pollock. He refused to conduct substantial public relations duties for teams even after BAT attempted to purchase more public relations appearances for him, and he limited his commitments communicating to the press. Journalist Matt Bishop observed that Villeneuve was frequently criticised for refusing to do sponsorship functions and for his self-imposed limiting interactions with the press at , but Bishop noted others appreciated Villeneuve's focus on racing and instead of "extraneous commitments". Villeneuve resisted to join the Grand Prix Drivers' Association (GPDA), which he believed would serve only the interests of drivers and not F1's. However, he finally joined in late 2000, feeling his views were being ignored. Villeneuve decided to resign from the GPDA in mid-2006 because he was unhappy that its president, Schumacher, had been deemed to have purposely stopped during qualifying for the .


title: Jacques Villeneuve

text: He was voted the winner of the Lorenzo Bandini Trophy in 1996, and both the Lou Marsh Trophy and the Lionel Conacher Award in 1995 and 1997. Villeneuve received the Hawthorn Memorial Trophy for 1997 as the most successful British or Commonwealth driver over the course of a season. In April 1998, he was appointed Officer of the National Order of Quebec but collected the honour at the following year's ceremony due to his racing commitments. He was added to Canada's Walk of Fame two months later. In December 2010, Villeneuve was inducted into the athlete category of Canada's Sports Hall of Fame. He was added to both the FIA Hall of Fame and the Canadian Motorsport Hall of Fame seven and eight years later respectively.


title: Jacques Villeneuve

text: Journalist Mark Hughes describes Villeneuve's driving as "spectacular" and "hard-charging". Villeneuve frequently went past the edge of the available track to increase his momentum as much as possible. He provided his engineers with suggestions that Maurice Hamilton wrote were "so far from the norm to the point of diametrically opposed to standard practice, sometimes giving the impression of being pursued just for the hell of it." Villeneuve prefers driving on slick tyres and with no electronic driver aids. He found driver aids difficult and thus ran with less traction control than his teammates since he could not deal with either the anti-lock system on the rear brakes or heavy traction control. This required Villeneuve to modify his driving style and take fewer risks until his exit from F1 in 2006. He switched from wearing spectacles in his helmet to contact lenses in 1994 after his spectacles vibrated slightly on minor bumps in Indianapolis.


title: Jacques Villeneuve

text: Villeneuve based the design of his racing helmet on his father's, reportedly drawing it on a doodling pad. He looked at a photograph of his mother wearing a pink, yellow, green and blue V-shaped striped polo shirt at a motor race her husband was competing at, and he used her pencils to produce the design. Villeneuve incorporated an inverted V-style swoosh with varying thickness of colours around the shape on the helmet's two sides. He retained a single black line from his first design in the centre to divide the colours without difficulty.


title: Neon

text: Neon is a chemical element with the symbol Ne and atomic number 10. It is a noble gas. Neon is a colorless, odorless, inert monatomic gas under standard conditions, with about two-thirds the density of air. It was discovered (along with krypton and xenon) in 1898 as one of the three residual rare inert elements remaining in dry air, after nitrogen, oxygen, argon and carbon dioxide were removed. Neon was the second of these three rare gases to be discovered and was immediately recognized as a new element from its bright red emission spectrum. The name neon is derived from the Greek word, , neuter singular form of (), meaning 'new'. Neon is chemically inert, and no uncharged neon compounds are known. The compounds of neon currently known include ionic molecules, molecules held together by van der Waals forces and clathrates.


title: Neon

text: During cosmic nucleogenesis of the elements, large amounts of neon are built up from the alpha-capture fusion process in stars. Although neon is a very common element in the universe and solar system (it is fifth in cosmic abundance after hydrogen, helium, oxygen and carbon), it is rare on Earth. It composes about 18.2 ppm of air by volume (this is about the same as the molecular or mole fraction) and a smaller fraction in Earth's crust. The reason for neon's relative scarcity on Earth and the inner (terrestrial) planets is that neon is highly volatile and forms no compounds to fix it to solids. As a result, it escaped from the planetesimals under the warmth of the newly ignited Sun in the early Solar System. Even the outer atmosphere of Jupiter is somewhat depleted of neon, although for a different reason.


title: Neon

text: Neon gives a distinct reddish-orange glow when used in low-voltage neon glow lamps, high-voltage discharge tubes and neon advertising signs. The red emission line from neon also causes the well known red light of helium–neon lasers. Neon is used in some plasma tube and refrigerant applications but has few other commercial uses. It is commercially extracted by the fractional distillation of liquid air. Since air is the only source, it is considerably more expensive than helium.


title: Neon

text: Neon was discovered in 1898 by the British chemists Sir William Ramsay (1852–1916) and Morris Travers (1872–1961) in London. Neon was discovered when Ramsay chilled a sample of air until it became a liquid, then warmed the liquid and captured the gases as they boiled off. The gases nitrogen, oxygen, and argon had been identified, but the remaining gases were isolated in roughly their order of abundance, in a six-week period beginning at the end of May 1898. First to be identified was krypton. The next, after krypton had been removed, was a gas which gave a brilliant red light under spectroscopic discharge. This gas, identified in June, was named "neon", the Greek analogue of the Latin "novum" ('new') suggested by Ramsay's son. The characteristic brilliant red-orange color emitted by gaseous neon when excited electrically was noted immediately. Travers later wrote: "the blaze of crimson light from the tube told its own story and was a sight to dwell upon and never forget."


title: Neon

text: A second gas was also reported along with neon, having approximately the same density as argon but with a different spectrum – Ramsay and Travers named it "metargon". However, subsequent spectroscopic analysis revealed it to be argon contaminated with carbon monoxide. Finally, the same team discovered xenon by the same process, in September 1898.


title: Neon

text: Neon's scarcity precluded its prompt application for lighting along the lines of Moore tubes, which used nitrogen and which were commercialized in the early 1900s. After 1902, Georges Claude's company Air Liquide produced industrial quantities of neon as a byproduct of his air-liquefaction business. In December 1910 Claude demonstrated modern neon lighting based on a sealed tube of neon. Claude tried briefly to sell neon tubes for indoor domestic lighting, due to their intensity, but the market failed because homeowners objected to the color. In 1912, Claude's associate began selling neon discharge tubes as eye-catching advertising signs and was instantly more successful. Neon tubes were introduced to the U.S. in 1923 with two large neon signs bought by a Los Angeles Packard car dealership. The glow and arresting red color made neon advertising completely different from the competition. The intense color and vibrancy of neon equated with American society at the time, suggesting a "century of progress" and transforming cities into sensational new environments filled with radiating advertisements and "electro-graphic architecture".


title: Neon

text: Neon played a role in the basic understanding of the nature of atoms in 1913, when J. J. Thomson, as part of his exploration into the composition of canal rays, channeled streams of neon ions through a magnetic and an electric field and measured the deflection of the streams with a photographic plate. Thomson observed two separate patches of light on the photographic plate (see image), which suggested two different parabolas of deflection. Thomson eventually concluded that some of the atoms in the neon gas were of higher mass than the rest. Though not understood at the time by Thomson, this was the first discovery of isotopes of stable atoms. Thomson's device was a crude version of the instrument we now term a mass spectrometer.


title: Neon

text: Ne and Ne are partly primordial and partly nucleogenic (i.e. made by nuclear reactions of other nuclides with neutrons or other particles in the environment) and their variations in natural abundance are well understood. In contrast, Ne (the chief primordial isotope made in stellar nucleosynthesis) is not known to be nucleogenic or radiogenic. The causes of the variation of Ne in the Earth have thus been hotly debated.


title: Neon

text: The principal nuclear reactions generating nucleogenic neon isotopes start from Mg and Mg, which produce Ne and Ne respectively, after neutron capture and immediate emission of an alpha particle. The neutrons that produce the reactions are mostly produced by secondary spallation reactions from alpha particles, in turn derived from uranium-series decay chains. The net result yields a trend towards lower Ne/Ne and higher Ne/Ne ratios observed in uranium-rich rocks such as granites.


title: Neon

text: In addition, isotopic analysis of exposed terrestrial rocks has demonstrated the cosmogenic (cosmic ray) production of Ne. This isotope is generated by spallation reactions on magnesium, sodium, silicon, and aluminium. By analyzing all three isotopes, the cosmogenic component can be resolved from magmatic neon and nucleogenic neon. This suggests that neon will be a useful tool in determining cosmic exposure ages of surface rocks and meteorites.


title: Neon

text: Neon in solar wind contains a higher proportion of Ne than nucleogenic and cosmogenic sources. Neon content observed in samples of volcanic gases and diamonds is also enriched in Ne, suggesting a primordial, possibly solar origin.


title: Neon

text: Neon is the second-lightest noble gas, after helium. It glows reddish-orange in a vacuum discharge tube. It has over 40 times the refrigerating capacity (per unit volume) of liquid helium and three times that of liquid hydrogen. In most applications it is a less expensive refrigerant than helium.


title: Neon

text: Neon plasma has the most intense light discharge at normal voltages and currents of all the noble gases. The average color of this light to the human eye is red-orange due to many lines in this range; it also contains a strong green line, which is hidden, unless the visual components are dispersed by a spectroscope.


title: Neon

text: Two quite different kinds of neon lighting are in common use. Neon glow lamps are generally tiny, with most operating between 100 and 250 volts. They have been widely used as power-on indicators and in circuit-testing equipment, but light-emitting diodes (LEDs) now dominate in those applications. These simple neon devices were the forerunners of plasma displays and plasma television screens. Neon signs typically operate at much higher voltages (2–15 kilovolts), and the luminous tubes are commonly meters long. The glass tubing is often formed into shapes and letters for signage, as well as architectural and artistic applications.


title: Neon

text: Stable isotopes of neon are produced in stars. Neon's most abundant isotope Ne (90.48%) is created by the nuclear fusion of carbon and carbon in the carbon-burning process of stellar nucleosynthesis. This requires temperatures above 500 megakelvins, which occur in the cores of stars of more than 8 solar masses.


title: Neon

text: Neon is abundant on a universal scale; it is the fifth most abundant chemical element in the universe by mass, after hydrogen, helium, oxygen, and carbon (see chemical element). Its relative rarity on Earth, like that of helium, is due to its relative lightness, high vapor pressure at very low temperatures, and chemical inertness, all properties which tend to keep it from being trapped in the condensing gas and dust clouds that formed the smaller and warmer solid planets like Earth.


title: Neon

text: Neon is monatomic, making it lighter than the molecules of diatomic nitrogen and oxygen which form the bulk of Earth's atmosphere; a balloon filled with neon will rise in air, albeit more slowly than a helium balloon.


title: Neon

text: Neon's abundance in the universe is about 1 part in 750; in the Sun and presumably in the proto-solar system nebula, about 1 part in 600. The Galileo spacecraft atmospheric entry probe found that even in the upper atmosphere of Jupiter, the abundance of neon is reduced (depleted) by about a factor of 10, to a level of 1 part in 6,000 by mass. This may indicate that even the ice-planetesimals, which brought neon into Jupiter from the outer solar system, formed in a region which was too warm to retain the neon atmospheric component (abundances of heavier inert gases on Jupiter are several times that found in the Sun).


title: Neon

text: Neon comprises 1 part in 55,000 in the Earth's atmosphere, or 18.2 ppm by volume (this is about the same as the molecule or mole fraction), or 1 part in 79,000 of air by mass. It comprises a smaller fraction in the crust. It is industrially produced by cryogenic fractional distillation of liquefied air.


title: Neon

text: On 17 August 2015, based on studies with the Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer (LADEE) spacecraft, NASA scientists reported the detection of neon in the exosphere of the moon.


title: Neon

text: Neon is the first p-block noble gas, and the first element with a true octet of electrons. It is inert: as is the case with its lighter analogue, helium, no strongly bound neutral molecules containing neon have been identified. The ions [NeAr], [NeH], and [HeNe] have been observed from optical and mass spectrometric studies. Solid neon clathrate hydrate was produced from water ice and neon gas at pressures 350–480 MPa and temperatures about −30 °C. Ne atoms are not bonded to water and can freely move through this material. They can be extracted by placing the clathrate into a vacuum chamber for several days, yielding ice XVI, the least dense crystalline form of water.


title: Neon

text: The familiar Pauling electronegativity scale relies upon chemical bond energies, but such values have obviously not been measured for inert helium and neon. The Allen electronegativity scale, which relies only upon (measurable) atomic energies, identifies neon as the most electronegative element, closely followed by fluorine and helium.


title: Neon

text: The triple point temperature of neon (24.5561 K) is a defining fixed point in the International Temperature Scale of 1990.


title: Neon

text: Neon is produced from air in cryogenic air-separation plants. A gas-phase mixture mainly of nitrogen, neon, and helium is withdrawn from the main condenser at the top of the high-pressure air-separation column and fed to the bottom of a side column for rectification of the neon. It can then be further purified from helium.


title: Neon

text: About 70% of global neon supply is produced in Ukraine as a by-product of steel production in Russia. , the company Iceblick, with plants in Odessa and Moscow, supplies 65 per cent of the world's production of neon, as well as 15% of the krypton and xenon.


title: Neon

text: Global neon prices jumped by about 600% after the 2014 Russian annexation of Crimea, spurring some chip manufacturers to start shifting away from Russian and Ukrainian suppliers and toward suppliers in China. The 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine also shut down two companies in Ukraine: LLC «Cryoin engineering» () and LLC «Inhaz» () located in Odessa and Mariupol respectively; that produced about half of the global supply. The closure was predicted to likely exacerbate COVID-19 chip shortage, which may further shift neon production to China.


title: Neon

text: Neon is often used in signs and produces an unmistakable bright reddish-orange light. Although tube lights with other colors are often called "neon", they use different noble gases or varied colors of fluorescent lighting.


title: Neon

text: Neon is used in vacuum tubes, high-voltage indicators, lightning arresters, wavemeter tubes, television tubes, and helium–neon lasers. Liquefied neon is commercially used as a cryogenic refrigerant in applications not requiring the lower temperature range attainable with more extreme liquid-helium refrigeration.


title: Neon

text: Neon, as liquid or gas, is relatively expensive – for small quantities, the price of liquid neon can be more than 55 times that of liquid helium. Driving neon's expense is the rarity of neon, which, unlike helium, can only be obtained in usable quantities by filtering it out of the atmosphere.


title: WION

text: WION (World is One News) is an Indian multinational English language news channel headquartered in New Delhi. It is owned by the Essel Group and is part of the Zee Media network of channels. The channel covers global news and current affairs.


title: WION

text: As of Dec 2022, WION has a followership of 7 million subscribers on Youtube and 470K followers on Twitter, and 2 million followers on Facebook.


title: WION

text: Zee Media hired Rohit Gandhi as the founder and first editor-in-chief to build the channel in August 2015. Gandhi spent the first 6 months in building the vision, branding, and technology of the network. In May 2016, he hired his former student Mandy Clark, former CBS correspondent, as his deputy for running the network. He then hired the senior management team, which included Mithaq Kazimi as Managing Producer, and senior journalists Surya Gangadharan as head of TV output and Padma Rao head of input.


title: WION

text: The founding team, led by Rohit Gandhi, spent over a year interviewing 2300 people to select about 200 journalists, with two HR professionals, Varsha Sinha and Vancha Garg, to select his team. The founding hired correspondents in countries throughout the world. Bureaus were established in zones in conflict with India, such as Taha Siddiqui in Pakistan was one of his hires who later had to seek asylum after Gandhi exited from the network. He also hired journalists, including Saad Hammadi, Bangladesh bureau chief and former correspondent for "The Guardian", Archith Seshadri, former CNN anchor, and Anchal Vohra as the Beirut and conflict region at large Correspondent.


title: WION

text: Its website was launched in many countries as a free-to-air satellite service on 15 June 2016. The television channel began airing on 15 August 2016. WION is India's first privately owned international news channel.


title: WION

text: Sudhir Chaudhary served as its editor-in-chief after Gandhi until he left in 2021. Palki Sharma Upadhyay served for 4 years and resigned in September 2022.


title: WION

text: The current team includes Sidhant Sibal of DD News joined the organization on 1 April 2018. Sumit Chaturvedi, who was previously with ET Now and CNBC TV18, currently looks after the business news content and conducts morning and evening business shows called "WALLET". The former news anchor of Republic TV, Akanksha Swarup, joined WION in 2018, becoming one of the channel's leading faces. Sayed Mustafa Kazemi became the Afghanistan correspondent for the channel in February 2020. Associated journalists include Naveen Kapoor, Digvijay Singh Deo, Rabin Sharma, Ieshan Wani, Kartikeya Sharma, and Alyson le Grange.


title: WION

text: The channel's Pakistan bureau chief, Taha Siddiqui, was forced into exile after a failed kidnapping attempt in Islamabad. He was replaced by Anas Mallick.


title: WION

text: WION is a traditional news channel that includes anchored programming as well as special programming listed below.


title: WION

text: WION has partnered with a number of media organizations, including Voice of America and Carnegie India.


title: WION

text: In 2021, the appointment of M. J. Akbar, an Indian journalist and politician who has been accused of sexual assault by women, to WION as an "editorial consultant" was met with controversy, with more than 150 journalists signing a statement demanding that Akbar be removed by WION and Zee News.


title: WION

text: On 22 March 2022, WION was blocked from YouTube for "violating Youtube's community guidelines". YouTube had taken objection to a video posted on 10 March broadcasting a speech by Sergey Lavrov, head of Russia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, denying the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine. YouTube unblocked the channel on 26 March after a social media campaign by WION.


title: WION

text: After former anchor Palki Sharma Upadhyay announced her retirement from WION and the creation of new talk show in CNN-News18, WION filed a lawsuit to Upadhyay, by saying that "confidential and proprietary Zee information" are taken by Upadhyay, and demanded that Upadhyay should continue to work for WION until December 2022 and pay for damages worth Rs. 2 crore. However, the Delhi High court refused WION's appeal, and the next hearing of the case would be delayed until March 2023.


title: Lucrezia Borgia

text: Lucrezia Borgia (; ; 18 April 1480 – 24 June 1519) was a Spanish-Italian noblewoman of the House of Borgia who was the daughter of Pope Alexander VI and Vannozza dei Cattanei. She reigned as the Governor of Spoleto, a position usually held by cardinals, in her own right.


title: Lucrezia Borgia

text: Her family arranged several marriages for her that advanced their own political position including Giovanni Sforza, Lord of Pesaro and Gradara, Count of Cotignola; Alfonso of Aragon, Duke of Bisceglie and Prince of Salerno; and Alfonso I d'Este, Duke of Ferrara. Tradition has it that Alfonso of Aragon was an illegitimate son of the King of Naples and that her brother Cesare Borgia may have had him murdered after his political value waned.


title: Lucrezia Borgia

text: Rumors about her and her family cast Lucrezia as a "femme fatale", a role in which she has been portrayed in many artworks, novels and films.


title: Lucrezia Borgia

text: Lucrezia Borgia was born on 18 April 1480 at Subiaco, near Rome. Her mother was Vannozza dei Cattanei, one of the mistresses of Lucrezia's father, Cardinal Rodrigo de Borgia (later Pope Alexander VI). During her early life, Lucrezia Borgia's education was entrusted to Adriana Orsini de Milan, a close confidant of her father. Her education would primarily take place in the Piazza Pizzo de Merlo, a building adjacent to her father's residence. Unlike most educated women of her time, for whom convents were the primary source for knowledge, her education came from within the sphere of intellectuals in the court and close relatives, and it included a solid grounding in the Humanities, which the Catholic Church was reviving at the time. She was a thoroughly accomplished princess, fluent in Spanish, Catalan, Italian, and French, which prepared her for advantageous marriage to any European monarch or prince, and literate in both Latin and Greek. She would also become proficient in the lute, poetry, and oration. The biggest testament to her intelligence is her capability in administration, as later on in life she took care of Vatican City correspondence and governance of Ferrara.


title: Lucrezia Borgia

text: On 26 February 1491, a matrimonial arrangement was drawn up between Lucrezia and the Lord of Val D'Ayora, in the kingdom of Valencia, Don Cherubino Joan de Centelles, which was annulled less than two months later in favour of a new contract engaging Lucrezia to Don Gaspare Aversa, count of Procida. When Rodrigo became Pope Alexander VI, he sought to be allied with powerful princely families and founding dynasties of Italy. He therefore called off Lucrezia's previous engagements and arranged for her to marry Giovanni Sforza, a member of the House of Sforza who was Lord of Pesaro and titled Count of Catignola. Giovanni was an illegitimate son of Costanzo I Sforza and a Sforza of the second rank. He married Lucrezia on 12 June 1493 in Rome.


title: Lucrezia Borgia

text: Before long, the Borgia family no longer needed the Sforzas, and the presence of Giovanni Sforza in the papal court was superfluous. The Pope needed new, more advantageous political alliances, so he might have covertly ordered the execution of Giovanni: the generally accepted version is that Lucrezia was informed of this by her brother Cesare, and she warned her husband, who fled Rome.


title: Lucrezia Borgia

text: Alexander asked Giovanni's uncle, Cardinal Ascanio Sforza, to persuade Giovanni to agree to an annulment of the marriage. Giovanni refused and accused Lucrezia of paternal incest. The pope asserted that his daughter's marriage had not been consummated and was thus invalid. Giovanni was offered her dowry in return for his cooperation. The Sforza family threatened to withdraw their protection should he refuse. Giovanni finally signed confessions of impotence and documents of annulment before witnesses.


title: Lucrezia Borgia

text: There has been speculation that during the prolonged process of the annulment, Lucrezia consummated a relationship with someone, perhaps Alexander's chamberlain Pedro Calderon, also named Perotto. In any case, families hostile to the Borgias would later accuse her of being pregnant at the time her marriage was annulled for non-consummation. She is known to have retired to the convent of San Sisto in June 1497 to await the outcome of the annulment proceedings, which were finalized in December of the same year. The bodies of Pedro Calderon and a maid, Pantasilea, were found in the Tiber in February 1498. In March 1498, the Ferrarese ambassador claimed that Lucrezia had given birth, but this was denied by other sources. A child was born, however, in the Borgia household the year before Lucrezia's marriage to Alfonso of Aragon. He was named Giovanni but is known to historians as the ""Infans Romanus"".


title: Lucrezia Borgia

text: In 1501, two papal bulls were issued concerning the child, Giovanni Borgia. In the first, he was recognized as Cesare's child from an affair before his marriage. The second, contradictory, bull recognized him as the son of Pope Alexander VI. Lucrezia's name is not mentioned in either, and rumours that she was his mother have never been proven. The second bull was kept secret for many years, and Giovanni was assumed to be Cesare's son. This is supported by the fact that in 1502 he became Duke of Camerino, one of Cesare's recent conquests, hence the natural inheritance of the Duke of Romagna's oldest son. Giovanni went to stay with Lucrezia in Ferrara after Alexander's death, where he was accepted as her half-brother.


title: Lucrezia Borgia

text: Following her annulment from Sforza, Lucrezia was married to the Neapolitan Alfonso of Aragon, the half-brother of Sancha of Aragon who was the wife of Lucrezia's brother Gioffre Borgia. The marriage was a short one.


title: Lucrezia Borgia

text: They were married in 1498, making Lucrezia the Duchess consort of Bisceglie and Princess consort of Salerno. Lucrezia – not her husband – was appointed governor of Spoleto in 1499; Alfonso fled Rome shortly afterwards but returned at Lucrezia's request, only to be murdered in 1500.


title: Lucrezia Borgia

text: It was widely rumoured that Lucrezia's brother Cesare was responsible for Alfonso's death, as he had recently allied himself (through marriage) with France against Naples. Lucrezia and Alfonso had one child, Rodrigo of Aragon, who was born in 1499 and predeceased his mother in August 1512 at the age of 12.


title: Lucrezia Borgia

text: After the death of Lucrezia's second husband, her father, Pope Alexander VI, arranged a third marriage. She then married Alfonso I d'Este, Duke of Ferrara, in early 1502 in Ferrara. She had eight children during this marriage and was considered a respectable and accomplished Renaissance duchess, effectively rising above her previous reputation and surviving the fall of the Borgias following her father's death.


title: Lucrezia Borgia

text: Neither partner was faithful: beginning in 1503, Lucrezia enjoyed a long relationship with her brother-in-law, Francesco II Gonzaga, Marquess of Mantua. Francesco's wife was the cultured intellectual Isabella d'Este, the sister of Alfonso, to whom Lucrezia had made overtures of friendship to no avail. The affair between Francesco and Lucrezia was passionate, more sexual than sentimental as can be attested in the fevered love letters the pair wrote one another. It has been claimed that the affair ended when Francesco contracted syphilis and had to end sexual relations with Lucrezia. This last assertion is problematic as Francesco had contracted syphilis before 1500 as it was known that he passed the disease onto his eldest son Federico Gonzaga who was born in 1500. Francesco did not meet Lucrezia until 1502.


title: Lucrezia Borgia

text: Lucrezia also had a love affair with the poet Pietro Bembo during her third marriage. Their love letters were deemed "The prettiest love letters in the world" by the Romantic poet Lord Byron when he saw them in the Ambrosian Library of Milan on 15 October 1816. On the same occasion Byron claimed to have stolen a lock of Lucrezia's hair – "the prettiest and fairest imaginable" – that was also held there on display.


title: Lucrezia Borgia

text: Lucrezia met the famed French soldier, the Chevalier Bayard while the latter was co-commanding the French allied garrison of Ferrara in 1510. According to his biographer, the Chevalier became a great admirer of Lucrezia's, considering her a "pearl on this Earth".


title: Lucrezia Borgia

text: After a long history of complicated pregnancies and miscarriages, on 14 June 1519 Lucrezia gave birth to her tenth child, named Isabella Maria in honour of Alfonso's sister Isabella d'Este. The child was sickly and – fearing she would die unbaptised – Alfonso ordered her to be baptised straightaway with Eleonora della Mirandola and Count Alexandro Serafino as godparents.


title: Lucrezia Borgia

text: Lucrezia had become very weak during the pregnancy and fell seriously ill after the birth. After seeming to recover for two days, she worsened again and died on 24 June the same year. She was buried in the convent of Corpus Domini.


title: Lucrezia Borgia

text: She is described as having heavy blonde hair that fell past her knees, a beautiful complexion, hazel eyes that changed colour, a full, high bosom, and a natural grace that made her appear to "walk on air". These physical attributes were highly appreciated in Italy during that period. Another description said, "her mouth is rather large, the teeth brilliantly white, her neck is slender and fair, and the bust is admirably proportioned."


title: Lucrezia Borgia

text: One painting, "Portrait of a Youth" by Dosso Dossi at the National Gallery of Victoria, was identified as a portrait of Lucrezia in November 2008. This painting may be the only surviving formal portrait of Lucrezia Borgia; however, doubts have been cast on that attribution. Several other paintings, such as Veneto's fanciful portrait, have also been said to depict her, but none have been accepted by scholars at present.


title: Lucrezia Borgia

text: According to Mandell Creighton in his "History of the Papacy", "Lucrezia… was personally popular through her beauty and her affability. Her long golden hair, her sweet childish face, her pleasant expression and her graceful ways, seem to have struck all who saw her."


title: Lucrezia Borgia

text: Several rumours have persisted throughout the years, primarily speculating as to the nature of the extravagant parties thrown by the Borgia family. One example is the Banquet of Chestnuts. Many of these concern allegations of incest, poisoning, and murder on her part; however, no historical basis for these rumours has ever been brought forward beyond allegations made by rival parties.


title: Lucrezia Borgia

text: Giovanni Borgia, ""infans Romanus"" ("Child of Rome", c. 1498–1548) had his paternity acknowledged by both Alexander and Cesare in two separate Papal bulls, but it was rumoured that he was the child of Lucrezia and Perotto. The child (identified in later life as Lucrezia's half-brother) was most likely the result of a liaison between Rodrigo Borgia (Pope Alexander VI, Lucrezia's father) and an unknown mistress and was not Lucrezia's child.


title: Lucrezia Borgia

text: Maria Bellonci and maybe other biographers claim that Lucrezia gave birth to three children who did not survive infancy, one by Alfonso of Aragon and two by Alfonso d'Este. She is also thought to have had at least four miscarriages.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: Radio-frequency identification (RFID) uses electromagnetic fields to automatically identify and track tags attached to objects. An RFID system consists of a tiny radio transponder, a radio receiver and transmitter. When triggered by an electromagnetic interrogation pulse from a nearby RFID reader device, the tag transmits digital data, usually an identifying inventory number, back to the reader. This number can be used to track inventory goods.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: Passive tags are powered by energy from the RFID reader's interrogating radio waves. Active tags are powered by a battery and thus can be read at a greater range from the RFID reader, up to hundreds of meters.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: Unlike a barcode, the tag does not need to be within the line of sight of the reader, so it may be embedded in the tracked object. RFID is one method of automatic identification and data capture (AIDC).


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: RFID tags are used in many industries. For example, an RFID tag attached to an automobile during production can be used to track its progress through the assembly line, RFID-tagged pharmaceuticals can be tracked through warehouses, and implanting RFID microchips in livestock and pets enables positive identification of animals. Tags can also be used in shops to expedite checkout, and to prevent theft by customers and employees.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: Since RFID tags can be attached to physical money, clothing, and possessions, or implanted in animals and people, the possibility of reading personally-linked information without consent has raised serious privacy concerns. These concerns resulted in standard specifications development addressing privacy and security issues.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: In 2014, the world RFID market was worth US$8.89 billion, up from US$7.77 billion in 2013 and US$6.96 billion in 2012. This figure includes tags, readers, and software/services for RFID cards, labels, fobs, and all other form factors. The market value is expected to rise from US$12.08 billion in 2020 to US$16.23 billion by 2029.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: In 1945, Léon Theremin invented the "Thing", a listening device for the Soviet Union which retransmitted incident radio waves with the added audio information. Sound waves vibrated a diaphragm which slightly altered the shape of the resonator, which modulated the reflected radio frequency. Even though this device was a covert listening device, rather than an identification tag, it is considered to be a predecessor of RFID because it was passive, being energised and activated by waves from an outside source.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: Similar technology, such as the Identification friend or foe transponder, was routinely used by the Allies and Germany in World War II to identify aircraft as friendly or hostile. Transponders are still used by most powered aircraft. An early work exploring RFID is the landmark 1948 paper by Harry Stockman, who predicted that "Considerable research and development work has to be done before the remaining basic problems in reflected-power communication are solved, and before the field of useful applications is explored."


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: Mario Cardullo's device, patented on January 23, 1973, was the first true ancestor of modern RFID, as it was a passive radio transponder with memory. The initial device was passive, powered by the interrogating signal, and was demonstrated in 1971 to the New York Port Authority and other potential users. It consisted of a transponder with 16 bit memory for use as a toll device. The basic Cardullo patent covers the use of radio frequency (RF), sound and light as transmission carriers. The original business plan presented to investors in 1969 showed uses in transportation (automotive vehicle identification, automatic toll system, electronic license plate, electronic manifest, vehicle routing, vehicle performance monitoring), banking (electronic chequebook, electronic credit card), security (personnel identification, automatic gates, surveillance) and medical (identification, patient history).


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: In 1973, an early demonstration of "reflected power" (modulated backscatter) RFID tags, both passive and semi-passive, was performed by Steven Depp, Alfred Koelle and Robert Frayman at the Los Alamos National Laboratory. The portable system operated at 915 MHz and used 12-bit tags. This technique is used by the majority of today's UHFID and microwave RFID tags.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: In 1996, the first patent for a batteryless RFID passive tag with limited interference was granted to David Everett, John Frech, Theodore Wright, and Kelly Rodriguez.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: A radio-frequency identification system uses "tags", or "labels" attached to the objects to be identified. Two-way radio transmitter-receivers called "interrogators" or "readers" send a signal to the tag and read its response.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: The tag information is stored in a non-volatile memory. The RFID tag includes either fixed or programmable logic for processing the transmission and sensor data, respectively.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: RFID tags can be either passive, active or battery-assisted passive. An active tag has an on-board battery and periodically transmits its ID signal. A battery-assisted passive tag has a small battery on board and is activated when in the presence of an RFID reader. A passive tag is cheaper and smaller because it has no battery; instead, the tag uses the radio energy transmitted by the reader. However, to operate a passive tag, it must be illuminated with a power level roughly a thousand times stronger than an active tag for signal transmission. This makes a difference in interference and in exposure to radiation.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: Tags may either be read-only, having a factory-assigned serial number that is used as a key into a database, or may be read/write, where object-specific data can be written into the tag by the system user. Field programmable tags may be write-once, read-multiple; "blank" tags may be written with an electronic product code by the user.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: The RFID tag receives the message and then responds with its identification and other information. This may be only a unique tag serial number, or may be product-related information such as a stock number, lot or batch number, production date, or other specific information. Since tags have individual serial numbers, the RFID system design can discriminate among several tags that might be within the range of the RFID reader and read them simultaneously.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: Fixed readers are set up to create a specific interrogation zone which can be tightly controlled. This allows a highly defined reading area for when tags go in and out of the interrogation zone. Mobile readers may be handheld or mounted on carts or vehicles.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: Signaling between the reader and the tag is done in several different incompatible ways, depending on the frequency band used by the tag. Tags operating on LF and HF bands are, in terms of radio wavelength, very close to the reader antenna because they are only a small percentage of a wavelength away. In this near field region, the tag is closely coupled electrically with the transmitter in the reader. The tag can modulate the field produced by the reader by changing the electrical loading the tag represents. By switching between lower and higher relative loads, the tag produces a change that the reader can detect. At UHF and higher frequencies, the tag is more than one radio wavelength away from the reader, requiring a different approach. The tag can backscatter a signal. Active tags may contain functionally separated transmitters and receivers, and the tag need not respond on a frequency related to the reader's interrogation signal.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: An Electronic Product Code (EPC) is one common type of data stored in a tag. When written into the tag by an RFID printer, the tag contains a 96-bit string of data. The first eight bits are a header which identifies the version of the protocol. The next 28 bits identify the organization that manages the data for this tag; the organization number is assigned by the EPCGlobal consortium. The next 24 bits are an object class, identifying the kind of product. The last 36 bits are a unique serial number for a particular tag. These last two fields are set by the organization that issued the tag. Rather like a URL, the total electronic product code number can be used as a key into a global database to uniquely identify a particular product.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: Often more than one tag will respond to a tag reader, for example, many individual products with tags may be shipped in a common box or on a common pallet. Collision detection is important to allow reading of data. Two different types of protocols are used to "singulate" a particular tag, allowing its data to be read in the midst of many similar tags. In a slotted Aloha system, the reader broadcasts an initialization command and a parameter that the tags individually use to pseudo-randomly delay their responses. When using an "adaptive binary tree" protocol, the reader sends an initialization symbol and then transmits one bit of ID data at a time; only tags with matching bits respond, and eventually only one tag matches the complete ID string.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: "Bulk reading" is a strategy for interrogating multiple tags at the same time, but lacks sufficient precision for inventory control. A group of objects, all of them RFID tagged, are read completely from one single reader position at one time. However, as tags respond strictly sequentially, the time needed for bulk reading grows linearly with the number of labels to be read. This means it takes at least twice as long to read twice as many labels. Due to collision effects, the time required is greater.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: A group of tags has to be illuminated by the interrogating signal just like a single tag. This is not a challenge concerning energy, but with respect to visibility; if any of the tags are shielded by other tags, they might not be sufficiently illuminated to return a sufficient response. The response conditions for inductively coupled HF RFID tags and coil antennas in magnetic fields appear better than for UHF or SHF dipole fields, but then distance limits apply and may prevent success.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: Under operational conditions, bulk reading is not reliable. Bulk reading can be a rough guide for logistics decisions, but due to a high proportion of reading failures, it is not (yet) suitable for inventory management. However, when a single RFID tag might be seen as not guaranteeing a proper read, multiple RFID tags, where at least one will respond, may be a safer approach for detecting a known grouping of objects. In this respect, bulk reading is a fuzzy method for process support. From the perspective of cost and effect, bulk reading is not reported as an economical approach to secure process control in logistics.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: RFID tags are easy to conceal or incorporate in other items. For example, in 2009 researchers at Bristol University successfully glued RFID micro-transponders to live ants in order to study their behavior. This trend towards increasingly miniaturized RFIDs is likely to continue as technology advances.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: Hitachi holds the record for the smallest RFID chip, at 0.05 mm × 0.05 mm. This is 1/64th the size of the previous record holder, the mu-chip. Manufacture is enabled by using the silicon-on-insulator (SOI) process. These dust-sized chips can store 38-digit numbers using 128-bit Read Only Memory (ROM). A major challenge is the attachment of antennas, thus limiting read range to only millimeters.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: In early 2020, MIT researchers demonstrated a terahertz frequency identification (TFID) tag that is barely 1 square millimeter in size. The devices are essentially a piece of silicon that are inexpensive, small, and function like larger RFID tags. Because of the small size, manufacturers could tag any product and track logistics information for minimal cost.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: An RFID tag can be affixed to an object and used to track tools, equipment, inventory, assets, people, or other objects.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: RFID offers advantages over manual systems or use of barcodes. The tag can be read if passed near a reader, even if it is covered by the object or not visible. The tag can be read inside a case, carton, box or other container, and unlike barcodes, RFID tags can be read hundreds at a time; barcodes can only be read one at a time using current devices. Some RFID tags, such as battery-assisted passive tags, are also able to monitor temperature and humidity.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: In 2011, the cost of passive tags started at US$0.09 each; special tags, meant to be mounted on metal or withstand gamma sterilization, could cost up to US$5. Active tags for tracking containers, medical assets, or monitoring environmental conditions in data centers started at US$50 and could be over US$100 each. Battery-Assisted Passive (BAP) tags were in the US$3–10 range.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: In 2010, three factors drove a significant increase in RFID usage: decreased cost of equipment and tags, increased performance to a reliability of 99.9%, and a stable international standard around HF and UHF passive RFID. The adoption of these standards were driven by EPCglobal, a joint venture between GS1 and GS1 US, which were responsible for driving global adoption of the barcode in the 1970s and 1980s. The EPCglobal Network was developed by the Auto-ID Center.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: RFID provides a way for organizations to identify and manage stock, tools and equipment (asset tracking), etc. without manual data entry. Manufactured products such as automobiles or garments can be tracked through the factory and through shipping to the customer. Automatic identification with RFID can be used for inventory systems. Many organisations require that their vendors place RFID tags on all shipments to improve supply chain management. Warehouse Management System incorporate this technology to speed up the receiving and delivery of the products and reduce the cost of labor needed in their warehouses.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: RFID is used for item level tagging in retail stores. In addition to inventory control, this provides both protection against theft by customers (shoplifting) and employees ("shrinkage") by using electronic article surveillance (EAS), and a self checkout process for customers. Tags of different types can be physically removed with a special tool or deactivated electronically once items have been paid for. On leaving the shop, customers have to pass near an RFID detector; if they have items with active RFID tags, an alarm sounds, both indicating an unpaid-for item, and identifying what it is.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: Casinos can use RFID to authenticate poker chips, and can selectively invalidate any chips known to be stolen.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: RFID tags are widely used in identification badges, replacing earlier magnetic stripe cards. These badges need only be held within a certain distance of the reader to authenticate the holder. Tags can also be placed on vehicles, which can be read at a distance, to allow entrance to controlled areas without having to stop the vehicle and present a card or enter an access code.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: Facebook is using RFID cards at most of their live events to allow guests to automatically capture and post photos.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: Automotive brands have adopted RFID for social media product placement more quickly than other industries. Mercedes was an early adopter in 2011 at the PGA Golf Championships, and by the 2013 Geneva Motor Show many of the larger brands were using RFID for social media marketing.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: To prevent retailers diverting products, manufacturers are exploring the use of RFID tags on promoted merchandise so that they can track exactly which product has sold through the supply chain at fully discounted prices.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: Yard management, shipping and freight and distribution centers use RFID tracking. In the railroad industry, RFID tags mounted on locomotives and rolling stock identify the owner, identification number and type of equipment and its characteristics. This can be used with a database to identify the type, origin, destination, etc. of the commodities being carried.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: In commercial aviation, RFID is used to support maintenance on commercial aircraft. RFID tags are used to identify baggage and cargo at several airports and airlines.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: Some countries are using RFID for vehicle registration and enforcement. RFID can help detect and retrieve stolen cars.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: RFID is used in intelligent transportation systems. In New York City, RFID readers are deployed at intersections to track E-ZPass tags as a means for monitoring the traffic flow. The data is fed through the broadband wireless infrastructure to the traffic management center to be used in adaptive traffic control of the traffic lights.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: Where ship, rail, or highway tanks are being loaded, a fixed RFID antenna contained in a transfer hose can read an RFID tag affixed to the tank, positively identifying it.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: At least one company has introduced RFID to identify and locate underground infrastructure assets such as gas pipelines, sewer lines, electrical cables, communication cables, etc.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: The first RFID passports ("E-passport") were issued by Malaysia in 1998. In addition to information also contained on the visual data page of the passport, Malaysian e-passports record the travel history (time, date, and place) of entry into and exit out of the country.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: Other countries that insert RFID in passports include Norway (2005), Japan (March 1, 2006), most EU countries (around 2006), Australia, Hong Kong, the United States (2007), the United Kingdom and Northern Ireland (2006), India (June 2008), Serbia (July 2008), Republic of Korea (August 2008), Taiwan (December 2008), Albania (January 2009), The Philippines (August 2009), Republic of Macedonia (2010), Argentina (2012), Canada (2013), Uruguay (2015) and Israel (2017).


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: Standards for RFID passports are determined by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), and are contained in ICAO Document 9303, Part 1, Volumes 1 and 2 (6th edition, 2006). ICAO refers to the ISO/IEC 14443 RFID chips in e-passports as "contactless integrated circuits". ICAO standards provide for e-passports to be identifiable by a standard e-passport logo on the front cover.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: Since 2006, RFID tags included in new United States passports will store the same information that is printed within the passport, and include a digital picture of the owner. The United States Department of State initially stated the chips could only be read from a distance of , but after widespread criticism and a clear demonstration that special equipment can read the test passports from away, the passports were designed to incorporate a thin metal lining to make it more difficult for unauthorized readers to skim information when the passport is closed. The department will also implement Basic Access Control (BAC), which functions as a personal identification number (PIN) in the form of characters printed on the passport data page. Before a passport's tag can be read, this PIN must be entered into an RFID reader. The BAC also enables the encryption of any communication between the chip and interrogator.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: In many countries, RFID tags can be used to pay for mass transit fares on bus, trains, or subways, or to collect tolls on highways.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: Some bike lockers are operated with RFID cards assigned to individual users. A prepaid card is required to open or enter a facility or locker and is used to track and charge based on how long the bike is parked.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: The Zipcar car-sharing service uses RFID cards for locking and unlocking cars and for member identification.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: RFID tags for animals represent one of the oldest uses of RFID. Originally meant for large ranches and rough terrain, since the outbreak of mad-cow disease, RFID has become crucial in animal identification management. An implantable RFID tag or transponder can also be used for animal identification. The transponders are better known as PIT (Passive Integrated Transponder) tags, passive RFID, or "chips" on animals. The Canadian Cattle Identification Agency began using RFID tags as a replacement for barcode tags. Currently CCIA tags are used in Wisconsin and by United States farmers on a voluntary basis. The USDA is currently developing its own program.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: Biocompatible microchip implants that use RFID technology are being routinely implanted in humans. The first-ever human to receive an RFID microchip implant was American artist Eduardo Kac in 1997. Kac implanted the microchip live on television (and also live on the Internet) in the context of his artwork "Time Capsule".


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: A year later, British professor of cybernetics Kevin Warwick had an RFID chip implanted in his arm by his general practitioner, George Boulos. In 2004 the 'Baja Beach Clubs' operated by Conrad Chase in Barcelona and Rotterdam offered implanted chips to identify their VIP customers, who could in turn use it to pay for service. In 2009 British scientist Mark Gasson had an advanced glass capsule RFID device surgically implanted into his left hand and subsequently demonstrated how a computer virus could wirelessly infect his implant and then be transmitted on to other systems.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: The Food and Drug Administration in the United States approved the use of RFID chips in humans in 2004.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: There is controversy regarding human applications of implantable RFID technology including concerns that individuals could potentially be tracked by carrying an identifier unique to them. Privacy advocates have protested against implantable RFID chips, warning of potential abuse. Some are concerned this could lead to abuse by an authoritarian government, to removal of freedoms, and to the emergence of an "ultimate panopticon", a society where all citizens behave in a socially accepted manner because others might be watching.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: On July 22, 2006, Reuters reported that two hackers, Newitz and Westhues, at a conference in New York City demonstrated that they could clone the RFID signal from a human implanted RFID chip, indicating that the device was not as secure as was previously claimed.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: Adoption of RFID in the medical industry has been widespread and very effective. Hospitals are among the first users to combine both active and passive RFID. Active tags track high-value, or frequently moved items, and passive tags track smaller, lower cost items that only need room-level identification. Medical facility rooms can collect data from transmissions of RFID badges worn by patients and employees, as well as from tags assigned to items such as mobile medical devices. The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) recently announced plans to deploy RFID in hospitals across America to improve care and reduce costs.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: Since 2004 a number of U.S. hospitals have begun implanting patients with RFID tags and using RFID systems, usually for workflow and inventory management.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: In October 2004, the FDA approved the USA's first RFID chips that can be implanted in humans. The 134 kHz RFID chips, from VeriChip Corp. can incorporate personal medical information and could save lives and limit injuries from errors in medical treatments, according to the company. Anti-RFID activists Katherine Albrecht and Liz McIntyre discovered an FDA Warning Letter that spelled out health risks. According to the FDA, these include "adverse tissue reaction", "migration of the implanted transponder", "failure of implanted transponder", "electrical hazards" and "magnetic resonance imaging [MRI] incompatibility."


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: Libraries have used RFID to replace the barcodes on library items. The tag can contain identifying information or may just be a key into a database. An RFID system may replace or supplement bar codes and may offer another method of inventory management and self-service checkout by patrons. It can also act as a security device, taking the place of the more traditional electromagnetic security strip.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: It is estimated that over 30 million library items worldwide now contain RFID tags, including some in the Vatican Library in Rome.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: Since RFID tags can be read through an item, there is no need to open a book cover or DVD case to scan an item, and a stack of books can be read simultaneously. Book tags can be read while books are in motion on a conveyor belt, which reduces staff time. This can all be done by the borrowers themselves, reducing the need for library staff assistance. With portable readers, inventories could be done on a whole shelf of materials within seconds.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: However, as of 2008 this technology remained too costly for many smaller libraries, and the conversion period has been estimated at 11 months for an average-size library. A 2004 Dutch estimate was that a library which lends 100,000 books per year should plan on a cost of €50,000 (borrow- and return-stations: 12,500 each, detection porches 10,000 each; tags 0.36 each). RFID taking a large burden off staff could also mean that fewer staff will be needed, resulting in some of them getting laid off, but that has so far not happened in North America where recent surveys have not returned a single library that cut staff because of adding RFID. In fact, library budgets are being reduced for personnel and increased for infrastructure, making it necessary for libraries to add automation to compensate for the reduced staff size. Also, the tasks that RFID takes over are largely not the primary tasks of librarians. A finding in the Netherlands is that borrowers are pleased with the fact that staff are now more available for answering questions.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: Privacy concerns have been raised surrounding library use of RFID. Because some RFID tags can be read up to away, there is some concern over whether sensitive information could be collected from an unwilling source. However, library RFID tags do not contain any patron information, and the tags used in the majority of libraries use a frequency only readable from approximately . Another concern is that a non-library agency could potentially record the RFID tags of every person leaving the library without the library administrator's knowledge or consent. One simple option is to let the book transmit a code that has meaning only in conjunction with the library's database. Another possible enhancement would be to give each book a new code every time it is returned. In future, should readers become ubiquitous (and possibly networked), then stolen books could be traced even outside the library. Tag removal could be made difficult if the tags are so small that they fit invisibly inside a (random) page, possibly put there by the publisher.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: RFID technologies are now also implemented in end-user applications in museums. An example was the custom-designed temporary research application, "eXspot", at the Exploratorium, a science museum in San Francisco, California. A visitor entering the museum received an RF tag that could be carried as a card. The eXspot system enabled the visitor to receive information about specific exhibits. Aside from the exhibit information, the visitor could take photographs of themselves at the exhibit. It was also intended to allow the visitor to take data for later analysis. The collected information could be retrieved at home from a "personalized" website keyed to the RFID tag.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: In 2004, school authorities in the Japanese city of Osaka made a decision to start chipping children's clothing, backpacks, and student IDs in a primary school. Later, in 2007, a school in Doncaster, England, is piloting a monitoring system designed to keep tabs on pupils by tracking radio chips in their uniforms. St Charles Sixth Form College in west London, England, started in 2008, uses an RFID card system to check in and out of the main gate, to both track attendance and prevent unauthorized entrance. Similarly, Whitcliffe Mount School in Cleckheaton, England, uses RFID to track pupils and staff in and out of the building via a specially designed card. In the Philippines, during 2012, some schools already use RFID in IDs for borrowing books. Gates in those particular schools also have RFID scanners for buying items at school shops and canteens. RFID is also used in school libraries, and to sign in and out for student and teacher attendance.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: RFID for timing races began in the early 1990s with pigeon racing, introduced by the company Deister Electronics in Germany. RFID can provide race start and end timings for individuals in large races where it is impossible to get accurate stopwatch readings for every entrant.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: In races utilizing RFID, racers wear tags that are read by antennas placed alongside the track or on mats across the track. UHF tags provide accurate readings with specially designed antennas. Rush error, lap count errors and accidents at race start are avoided, as anyone can start and finish at any time without being in a batch mode.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: The design of the chip and of the antenna controls the range from which it can be read. Short range compact chips are twist tied to the shoe, or strapped to the ankle with . The chips must be about 400 mm from the mat, therefore giving very good temporal resolution. Alternatively, a chip plus a very large (125mm square) antenna can be incorporated into the bib number worn on the athlete's chest at a height of about 1.25 m (4.10 ft).


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: Passive and active RFID systems are used in off-road events such as Orienteering, Enduro and Hare and Hounds racing. Riders have a transponder on their person, normally on their arm. When they complete a lap they swipe or touch the receiver which is connected to a computer and log their lap time.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: RFID is being adapted by many recruitment agencies which have a PET (physical endurance test) as their qualifying procedure, especially in cases where the candidate volumes may run into millions (Indian Railway recruitment cells, police and power sector).


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: A number of ski resorts have adopted RFID tags to provide skiers hands-free access to ski lifts. Skiers do not have to take their passes out of their pockets. Ski jackets have a left pocket into which the chip+card fits. This nearly contacts the sensor unit on the left of the turnstile as the skier pushes through to the lift. These systems were based on high frequency (HF) at 13.56 megahertz. The bulk of ski areas in Europe, from Verbier to Chamonix, use these systems.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: The NFL in the United States equips players with RFID chips that measures speed, distance and direction traveled by each player in real-time. Currently cameras stay focused on the quarterback; however, numerous plays are happening simultaneously on the field. The RFID chip will provide new insight into these simultaneous plays. The chip triangulates the player's position within six inches and will be used to digitally broadcast replays. The RFID chip will make individual player information accessible to the public. The data will be available via the NFL 2015 app. The RFID chips are manufactured by Zebra Technologies. Zebra Technologies tested the RFID chip in 18 stadiums last year to track vector data.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: RFID tags are often a complement, but not a substitute, for Universal Product Code (UPC) or European Article Number (EAN) barcodes. They may never completely replace barcodes, due in part to their higher cost and the advantage of multiple data sources on the same object. Also, unlike RFID labels, barcodes can be generated and distributed electronically by e-mail or mobile phone, for printing or display by the recipient. An example is airline boarding passes. The new EPC, along with several other schemes, is widely available at reasonable cost.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: The storage of data associated with tracking items will require many terabytes. Filtering and categorizing RFID data is needed to create useful information. It is likely that goods will be tracked by the pallet using RFID tags, and at package level with UPC or EAN from unique barcodes.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: The unique identity is a mandatory requirement for RFID tags, despite special choice of the numbering scheme. RFID tag data capacity is large enough that each individual tag will have a unique code, while current barcodes are limited to a single type code for a particular product. The uniqueness of RFID tags means that a product may be tracked as it moves from location to location while being delivered to a person. This may help to combat theft and other forms of product loss. The tracing of products is an important feature that is well supported with RFID tags containing a unique identity of the tag and the serial number of the object. This may help companies cope with quality deficiencies and resulting recall campaigns, but also contributes to concern about tracking and profiling of persons after the sale.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: Since around 2007 there been increasing development in the use of RFID in the waste management industry. RFID tags are installed on waste collection carts, linking carts to the owner's account for easy billing and service verification. The tag is embedded into a garbage and recycle container, and the RFID reader is affixed to the garbage and recycle trucks. RFID also measures a customer's set-out rate and provides insight as to the number of carts serviced by each waste collection vehicle. This RFID process replaces traditional "pay as you throw" (PAYT) municipal solid waste usage-pricing models.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: Active RFID tags have the potential to function as low-cost remote sensors that broadcast telemetry back to a base station. Applications of tagometry data could include sensing of road conditions by implanted beacons, weather reports, and noise level monitoring.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: Passive RFID tags can also report sensor data. For example, the Wireless Identification and Sensing Platform is a passive tag that reports temperature, acceleration and capacitance to commercial Gen2 RFID readers.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: It is possible that active or battery-assisted passive (BAP) RFID tags could broadcast a signal to an in-store receiver to determine whether the RFID tag – and by extension, the product it is attached to – is in the store.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: A number of organizations have set standards for RFID, including the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC), ASTM International, the DASH7 Alliance and EPCglobal.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: Several specific industries have also set guidelines, including the Financial Services Technology Consortium (FSTC) for tracking IT Assets with RFID, the Computer Technology Industry Association CompTIA for certifying RFID engineers, and the International Air Transport Association (IATA) for luggage in airports.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: Every country can set its own rules for frequency allocation for RFID tags, and not all radio bands are available in all countries. These frequencies are known as the ISM bands (Industrial Scientific and Medical bands). The return signal of the tag may still cause interference for other radio users.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: In North America, UHF can be used unlicensed for 902–928 MHz (±13 MHz from the 915 MHz center frequency), but restrictions exist for transmission power. In Europe, RFID and other low-power radio applications are regulated by ETSI recommendations EN 300 220 and EN 302 208, and ERO recommendation 70 03, allowing RFID operation with somewhat complex band restrictions from 865–868 MHz. Readers are required to monitor a channel before transmitting ("Listen Before Talk"); this requirement has led to some restrictions on performance, the resolution of which is a subject of current research. The North American UHF standard is not accepted in France as it interferes with its military bands. On July 25, 2012, Japan changed its UHF band to 920 MHz, more closely matching the United States' 915 MHz band, establishing an international standard environment for RFID.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: In some countries, a site license is needed, which needs to be applied for at the local authorities, and can be revoked.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: As of 31 October 2014, regulations are in place in 78 countries representing approximately 96.5% of the world's GDP, and work on regulations was in progress in three countries representing approximately 1% of the world's GDP.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: In order to ensure global interoperability of products, several organizations have set up additional standards for RFID testing. These standards include conformance, performance and interoperability tests.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: EPCglobal, a joint venture between GS1 and GS1 US, is working on international standards for the use of mostly passive RFID and the Electronic Product Code (EPC) in the identification of many items in the supply chain for companies worldwide.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: One of the missions of EPCglobal was to simplify the Babel of protocols prevalent in the RFID world in the 1990s. Two tag air interfaces (the protocol for exchanging information between a tag and a reader) were defined (but not ratified) by EPCglobal prior to 2003. These protocols, commonly known as Class 0 and Class 1, saw significant commercial implementation in 2002–2005.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: In 2004, the Hardware Action Group created a new protocol, the Class 1 Generation 2 interface, which addressed a number of problems that had been experienced with Class 0 and Class 1 tags. The EPC Gen2 standard was approved in December 2004. This was approved after a contention from Intermec that the standard may infringe a number of their RFID-related patents. It was decided that the standard itself does not infringe their patents, making the standard royalty free. The EPC Gen2 standard was adopted with minor modifications as ISO 18000-6C in 2006.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: In 2007, the lowest cost of Gen2 EPC inlay was offered by the now-defunct company SmartCode, at a price of $0.05 apiece in volumes of 100 million or more.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: Not every successful reading of a tag (an observation) is useful for business purposes. A large amount of data may be generated that is not useful for managing inventory or other applications. For example, a customer moving a product from one shelf to another, or a pallet load of articles that passes several readers while being moved in a warehouse, are events that do not produce data that are meaningful to an inventory control system.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: Event filtering is required to reduce this data inflow to a meaningful depiction of moving goods passing a threshold. Various concepts have been designed, mainly offered as "middleware" performing the filtering from noisy and redundant raw data to significant processed data.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: The frequencies used for UHF RFID in the USA are as of 2007 incompatible with those of Europe or Japan. Furthermore, no emerging standard has yet become as universal as the barcode. To address international trade concerns, it is necessary to use a tag that is operational within all of the international frequency domains.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: A primary RFID security concern is the illicit tracking of RFID tags. Tags, which are world-readable, pose a risk to both personal location privacy and corporate/military security. Such concerns have been raised with respect to the United States Department of Defense's recent adoption of RFID tags for supply chain management. More generally, privacy organizations have expressed concerns in the context of ongoing efforts to embed electronic product code (EPC) RFID tags in general-use products. This is mostly as a result of the fact that RFID tags can be read, and legitimate transactions with readers can be eavesdropped on, from non-trivial distances. RFID used in access control, payment and eID (e-passport) systems operate at a shorter range than EPC RFID systems but are also vulnerable to skimming and eavesdropping, albeit at shorter distances.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: A second method of prevention is by using cryptography. Rolling codes and challenge–response authentication (CRA) are commonly used to foil monitor-repetition of the messages between the tag and reader, as any messages that have been recorded would prove to be unsuccessful on repeat transmission. Rolling codes rely upon the tag's ID being changed after each interrogation, while CRA uses software to ask for a cryptographically coded response from the tag. The protocols used during CRA can be symmetric, or may use public key cryptography.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: Unauthorized reading of RFID tags presents a risk to privacy and to business secrecy. Unauthorized readers can potentially use RFID information to identify or track packages, persons, carriers, or the contents of a package. Several prototype systems are being developed to combat unauthorized reading, including RFID signal interruption, as well as the possibility of legislation, and 700 scientific papers have been published on this matter since 2002. There are also concerns that the database structure of Object Naming Service may be susceptible to infiltration, similar to denial-of-service attacks, after the EPCglobal Network ONS root servers were shown to be vulnerable.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: In an effort to prevent the passive "skimming" of RFID-enabled cards or passports, the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) issued a set of test procedures for evaluating electromagnetically opaque sleeves. For shielding products to be in compliance with FIPS-201 guidelines, they must meet or exceed this published standard; compliant products are listed on the website of the U.S. CIO's FIPS-201 Evaluation Program. The United States government requires that when new ID cards are issued, they must be delivered with an approved shielding sleeve or holder. Although many wallets and passport holders are advertised to protect personal information, there is little evidence that RFID skimming is a serious threat; data encryption and use of EMV chips rather than RFID makes this sort of theft rare.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: There are contradictory opinions as to whether aluminum can prevent reading of RFID chips. Some people claim that aluminum shielding, essentially creating a Faraday cage, does work. Others claim that simply wrapping an RFID card in aluminum foil only makes transmission more difficult and is not completely effective at preventing it.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: Shielding effectiveness depends on the frequency being used. Low-frequency LowFID tags, like those used in implantable devices for humans and pets, are relatively resistant to shielding, although thick metal foil will prevent most reads. High frequency HighFID tags (13.56 MHz—smart cards and access badges) are sensitive to shielding and are difficult to read when within a few centimetres of a metal surface. UHF Ultra-HighFID tags (pallets and cartons) are difficult to read when placed within a few millimetres of a metal surface, although their read range is actually increased when they are spaced 2–4 cm from a metal surface due to positive reinforcement of the reflected wave and the incident wave at the tag.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: The use of RFID has engendered considerable controversy and some consumer privacy advocates have initiated product boycotts. Consumer privacy experts Katherine Albrecht and Liz McIntyre are two prominent critics of the "spychip" technology. The two main privacy concerns regarding RFID are as follows:


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: Most concerns revolve around the fact that RFID tags affixed to products remain functional even after the products have been purchased and taken home and thus can be used for surveillance and other purposes unrelated to their supply chain inventory functions.


title: Radio-frequency identification

text: The RFID Network responded to these fears in the first episode of their syndicated cable TV series, saying that they are unfounded, and let RF engineers demonstrate how RFID works. They provided images of RF engineers driving an RFID-enabled van around a building and trying to take an inventory of items inside. They also discussed satellite tracking of a passive RFID tag.