Impact of Moisture and Washing on the Performance of Embroidered UHF RFID Tags

Author

Toivonen, Mikko ; Bjorninen, Toni ; Sydanheimo, Lauri ; Ukkonen, Leena ; Rahmat-Samii, Yahya

Author_Institution

Dept. of Electron. & Commun., Tampere Univ. of Technol., Tampere, Finland

Volume

12

fYear

2013

fDate

2013

Firstpage

1590

Lastpage

1593

Abstract

Antennas can be seamlessly integrated into clothing by means of embroidery with conductive thread. In the real-life applications, wearable antennas are exposed to various environmental conditions. We studied the impact of moisture and washing on the performance of fully functional RFID tags based on embroidered antennas. The moisture absorbed in the tag structure can cause a temporary reduction in the tag read range. Repeated washing of the tag resulted in permanent reduction, which accumulated over the wash repetitions. Overall, the results indicated that protective coating is needed for sustained operation. Flexible, durable, and hydrophopic polymers, such as polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS), and polymer-ceramic composites are prominent candidates in terms of mechanical and electromagnetic properties.

Keywords

ceramics; composite materials; polymers; protective coatings; radiofrequency identification; wearable antennas; PDMS; conductive thread; embroidered UHF RFID tags; embroidered antennas; embroidery; hydrophopic polymers; moisture; polydimethylsiloxane; polymer ceramic composites; protective coating; washing; wearable antennas; Antenna measurements; Antennas; Integrated circuits; Moisture; Power measurement; Radiofrequency identification; Wireless communication; Embroidered antennas; radio frequency identification (RFID) tags; textile antennas; wearable antennas;

fLanguage

English

Journal_Title

Antennas and Wireless Propagation Letters, IEEE

Publisher

ieee

ISSN

1536-1225

Type

jour

DOI

10.1109/LAWP.2013.2293334

Filename

6677514