E d it o r s : Fr é d é r ic Th ie s s e • fr e der i c .t hie s se @uni sg.c h Fl o r i a n M ic h a h e ll e s • fmi c ha he l le s@et hz .c h n recent years, the Electronic Product Code (EPC) -a worldwide, unambiguous code for the designation of physical goods -has become the subject of enormous interest, not only in research but also in several industries and society in general. The rapid and escalating diffusion of the EPC was particularly driven by the Auto-ID Center, a project to develop RFID standards founded in 1999 at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) with cooperation from numerous industrial sponsors. 1 The Auto-ID Center created the EPC to ensure RFID interoperability in supply-chain-wide applications. An important feature is its capability to serve as a metascheme that integrates with existing numbering schemes, such as the serialized Global Trade Item Number (GTIN) standard used in retail. However, the Center's long-term objective wasn't only standardizing numbering formats but also developing an entire family of open standards, including air interface protocols, software interfaces, and directory services, to bridge the gap between the physical and virtual worlds. 2 In October 2003, the Auto-ID Center was transformed into an international research network known as Auto-ID Labs, which concentrates on technology as well as applicationoriented research, and EPCglobal, a nonprofit organization responsible for commercializing, standardizing, and managing EPC standards. The EPC Network is a global RFID data sharing infrastructure based on standards that are built around the Electronic Product Code (EPC), an unambiguous numbering scheme for the designation of physical goods. The authors present the fundamental concepts and applications of the EPC Network, its integration with enterprise systems, and its functionality for data exchange between organizations in the supply chain. Frédéric Thiesse
More specifically, the EPCglobal Network is a set of emerging standard specifications for a global RFID data sharing infrastructure built around the Electronic Product Code (EPC), an unambiguous numbering scheme for the designation of physical goods REF .
Technology, Standards, and Real-World Deployments of the EPC Network
IEEE Internet Computing
IEEE Internet Computing
Computer Science