A Study for Energy-Efficient NFC-RFID Tag Antennas Used in Asset Management Applications

The development of Near Field Communication (NFC) and Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) systems have seen significant advancements in recent years, driven by the need for secure, efficient, and interoperable solutions. This paper describes the design workflow, including theoretical backgrounds, simulations, and measurements of the passive planar antenna tags for asset management applications. According to theoretical formulations, the shape and dimensions of the antenna affect the quality of the NFC transmission because these parameters directly influence the antenna’s coil inductance. We have considered two distinctive designs according to the ISO/IEC 14443 standard and the NXP Semiconductors guide for “Class 3” and “Class 6” antennas based on the NFC Forum Type 2 Tag specifications (NTAG). The optimal design results have been further used in manufacturing and validated through electrical characterization and measurements. An energy efficiency assessment has been conducted based on the proposed design and measurements. Finally, the fabricated NTAG prototype was integrated into an NFC Asset Management Application, and a conclusion and discussions on the obtained results and future development are presented.