Development and Optimization of Antennas for 860–960 MHz RFID Applications and Their Impact on the Human Body

Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) systems operating in the 860–960 MHz frequency range are widely used in applications such as supply chain management, retail, access control, healthcare, and transportation. This study presents the design, modeling, and fabrication of two antennas for this frequency range, followed by a comparative analysis to identify the antenna with superior gain. Key parameters, including corner fillets and chamfering, as well as antenna length, were varied to evaluate their impact on gain and S-parameters for the initial antenna considered the best from the two structures analyzed, aiming to optimize performance while minimizing size and keeping the frequency unchanged. Additionally, the antennas’ interaction with the human body was assessed through numerical modeling by evaluating the electric and magnetic fields and calculating the specific absorption rate for a human leg and hand in order to analyze the impact of these types of antennas on the human body. The dimensions of the initial structure were minimized while the antenna operated in the same frequency range, leading to a small decrease in the gain. It was discovered that when analyzing the values of the parameters of interest regarding the interaction with a human body, the RFID will not exceed them when considering the human hand, but it will harm a human foot when not placed at a specific distance from it.