Patent ID: 8325011

Claim:
A method comprising: providing a radio frequency identification (RFID) tag, the RFID tag containing a plurality of RF network nodes mounted on a common substrate and operable thereon, wherein each of the plurality of RF network nodes has an RF and analog block for receiving and transmitting an RFID signal, a data processing and controller block for digital information processing, a memory store, and a power management block for managing power requirements of the RF network node; interconnecting the plurality of RF network nodes with one another into a network topology with a communication bus to enable storage of maintenance data in an encrypted format in a coordinated storage facility formed from the memory store of each of the plurality of RF network nodes; coordinating operation of the plurality of RF network nodes with at least one of the plurality of network nodes acting as a master RF network node coupled to the communication bus; associating the RFID tag with a component for which the maintenance data is desired; and reading the maintenance data from the RFID tag and decrypting the data to monitor a maintenance parameter of the component.