Make: Sensors

Chapter 9. Identity

Who are you? What object is sitting on top of the sensor? Identification sensors identify people and objects. In this chapter, you’ll learn to identify objects with RFID and people with fingerprints and keypads.

RFID (radio frequency identification) has long been hailed as the next big thing in identification. In reality, it’s slowly been becoming part of everyday life. RFID has largely replaced bar codes in warehouses, but bar codes are still used with individual consumer packages of products. RFID can be read from a distance, and it can store more data than a bar code. For example, a bar code identifies a product as “1 liter of Foobar, Inc. milk.” An RFID tag can also tell you that this specific carton was carton number 12,209,312, ...