Customer Reviews

RFID Field Guide: Deploying Radio Frequency Identification Systems

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

"RFID Field Guide" is an excellent book for an organization thinking about or starting a Radio Frequency Identification initiative. Unlike most books aimed at both business and technical readers, this one really is good for both. The authors don't assume a background of either, yet don't bore you with basics. The book provides a common language for business analysts and techies on a RFID project.

The authors clearly explain the components and relevant history of RFID. Real life examples and lessons learned are highlighted throughout. The Wal-Mart and DoD mandates are frequently referred to for suppliers. Diverse examples and case studies are also included. Security, privacy and trends are discussed. The book does not attempt to evaluate the constantly changing vendors and instead stores a comprehensive and up to date version online.

The only purely technical part of the book is an appendix, which describes the EPCglobal standard. Sun endorsed the book so it shoes the ties to XML and Java. I highly recommend this book to get business users an IT on the same page at the beginning of an RFID project.

This text distinguishes itself from others by its sustained attention to the potential of RFID in its market and current landscape. This book provides a reasoned hand-on and scholarly presentation of the field of RFID.

While it would be easy to criticize any introductory and field guide text for what it has left out or given slim summary, this book provides a reasonably even and well-balanced coverage of the "essentials" while retaining a relatively user-friendly size, along with specific case studies at the end. The chapters cohere well, but can stand alone: an important point for a RFID implementer who needs to pick and choose in order to fit the book into his or her RFID project of interests.
Congratulations to the authors for the job well done!

Having already begun to be a cutting edge technology that has proved itself effective in streamlining a broad and diverse array of supply-side resources in the private sector -- RFID will, no doubt, continue to expand and integrate itself into other sectors: How and when this occurs is a question of understanding the merits and true potential of this incredible technology.

This is a must-read for anyone who not only wants to understand RFID for what it is and what it could be in terms of application, but also for anyone who wants to see how effective the confluence of information age technology can be utilized to advance and improve pre-existing systems, services, and production mechanisms.

Bhuptani and Moradpour present RFID in a very accessible and easily-understood manner that appeals to a broad range of readers. From us laypersons who, quite frankly, might view RFID as a new opportunity for investment; to the many technophiles who are already tearing through this book to understand the many different nuances and future potential of this new technology; as well as any manager who is constantly looking to streamline the systems that he or she operates.

Believe the hype: RFID is the future and the RFID FIELD GUIDE not only provides a picture of it, it IS the map that can get you there.

As Sun gropes around for a next Big Thing in technology, this book tries to suggest that RFID might be it. The text is written at a management level of discussion. You do not need to be in IT hardware or software to benefit from the book's explanations.

The authors discuss the business implications of RFID deployment. Not just in the background of a supply chain, but also at a mass consumer level. To wit, there is a careful airing of the privacy issues that might arise if RFID tags can be used for tracking people and their purchases. And different countries have different policies towards these issues.

The conclusion is broadly positive for an eventual ubiquitous deployment. Prudently, the authors desist from suggesting when that might be.

RFID Field Guide provides a focused analysis and resources for those who seek to capitalize on RFID-derived business opportunities. It is not an RFID primer nor a theoretical treatise as much as a guide for those who must act today on RFID. Of the 3 sections (I: What is; II: How to Deploy; III: Path Ahead), this book is focused on the latter two issues. Having worked with both authors, I can hear their Java & Jini market development experience throughout this book. These are not techies who are fascinated by technology. Rather, Moradpour and Bhuptani believe that RFID will benefit the business processes of some companies more than others. This book stems from their significant experience with platforms, technology innovation cycles and managing ecosystems. In this respect, I found the book unique from other books answering the "big" RFID questions.

Two criticisms of the book include the surprisingly non-quantitative nature of Chapter 7: Cost-Benefit Analysis. I expected the financial analysis behind some RFID deployments or even some good projections on the Wal-Mart mandate (although the case studies in the appendix are good). And, second, the authors frequently plug a URL for more information (www.rfidfieldguide.com). I found the site disappointingly bare of updated data or even links to other good sources. Perhaps they will add to this site in the near future.

As for this coming from a Sun-Prentice Hall Press, the analysis has almost nothing to do with Sun's technology. That said, at Sun we often say that RFID will fill more databases and storage than any human-keyed application (think Web URL strings and navigation data for everything connected to the Net).

In sum, Bhuptani and Moradpour have provided a seasoned structural analysis that can be used to drive real-world RFID deployments as well as challenge practitioners to envision and prepare for an "RFID-enabled world."

You can find a lot of written stuff about RFID on the Internet for free. When you try playing with the real readers and tags and try to write your own RFID application it becomes clear that the practice is far behind the theory. A narrow (and inexpensive) shortcut for matching both is so called "PIRF" (platform independent radio frequency API). It is Java based and runs on both Windows and Linux platforms. The Lite version comes with some of TI developers Kits. There are some examples on how to use it and it works fine with a number of RFID readers (mostly TI ). Anyways, it is useful for you first clash with RFID to have it on your side.

I bought the book expecting it to be perfect for somebody who is in charge of deploying RFID technology. I found the first few chapters quite useful for this regard. However, the bulk of the book was focused on analyzing the cost and benefits of introducing RFID in the first place, how to sell it to management, pilot programs, etc. This is excellent advice, but not very useful for somebody interested in the HOW TO deploy RFID. Overall, I was very disappointed with this book on the technical side, although it was an interesting read on the management side.

With many wireless cutting edge technologies, RFID plays a unique role in wireless communications for a short range communications. RFID finds a broad range of applications including wear-house tracking, hospitals to other cool stuff like e-payment at departmental stores to vending machines.

This is a great book for a beginner to technologist for understanding RFID concepts, RFID market opportunities and deployment guide. At the same time, book provides clear understanding of benefits and issues with RFID technology, standards status and architecture along with great market survey with vendors list.

Both authors seem to have a great experience working with RFID technologies from conception to deployment. Mr. Bhuptani and Mr. Moradpour created a great web site http://www.rfidfieldguide.com with close to 300 vendors list.

Once RFID integration in handheld devices like PDA and cell phone is realized, market opportunities are uncountable.

The information presented in this book is very basic and entry level for those who have not a clue about RFID. All information are available almost every where on the internet, they just gathered them in a book form. The book explains stuff that every body knows when implementing a technical project, like selecting vendors, implementing projects, etc.

Recomended only for those who have never implemented a technical project (not even RFID).

This is an excellent book for a company evaluating Radio Frequency Identification. It is a great reference for both a project manager or a person in the trenches, who is doing the implementation. Its focus is evenly balanced between the business issues and the technical issues.

The authors provide an overview of RFID, including historical context to set the stage. They follow through with key concepts about RFID and as well as EPC standards and dedicate most of the book towards implementation related issues, including project management and cost-benefit analysis. Each chapter begins with a set of questions which I found quite useful. The authors successfully tie the lessons learned from other deployments and the historical technology adoption trends into the book to make some interesting predictions about RFID as well as provide a road-map for the practitoners. The variety of examples sprinkled through out the book as well as the detailed case studies in the back of the book drive home the points.

This is a must-read for anyone thinking of evaluating or deploying RFID. The corresponding web-site (www.rfidfieldguide.com) offers a comprehensive list of RFID vendors as well as informatin on the basic and advanced RFID classes offered by the authors.