ABSTRACT
Radio frequency identication (RFID) has been called the next-generation bar code, but it is already widely in use with current applications ranging from libraries to toll booth e-passes. The greatest advantage in RFID systems, which are composed of an interrogator (reader) and transponders (tags), is that they do not require a line of sight between the reader and the tags. Successful application of this technology could revolutionize today’s bar code-based inventory system aboard the international space station, in which thousands of items are kept track of with manual database updates or line-of-sight bar code scans, one item at a time. With an RFID system in place, entire bags of items afxed with RFID tags could be audited in seconds without ever having to open the bag, saving both astronaut and ground support time. Such a system will be essential for efcient logistic support of future lunar and Mars base operations.
