Trend Report 2005

Uwe Sandner, Bernhard Kirchmair, Philip Mayrhofer, Maximilian Zündt (eds.)

CDTM, München, 2006
357 p.
ISBN 978-3-9808842-5-9

Emerging tracking & tracing and ubiquitous computing technologies, most notably RFID, promise to change today’s business and society in various ways. These new technologies hold powerful potentials to boost process efficiency in logistics, security, health and many other areas by reducing errors and counterfeiting, superseding media breaks and accelerating processing speed, going far beyond the boundaries of existing barcode based applications. The gap between the real world of physical objects and the virtual information space is more and more diminished, the flow of goods and the flow of data approach parallelism, enabling companies to get a more precise view of their internal assets to better control and manage their processes. The connection between a physical good and its manufacturer through the whole product life cycle enables enterprises to sell interlocked services and solutions, increase customer lock in and follow new business models. Value added services provide vast benefits for consumers and make life easier and more secure. The standardization of product related data facilitates the exchange of information between companies all along the supply chain.
This trend report shows the work and visions of 20 students of the Center for Digital Technology and Management. Their work represents a starting point in understanding where tracking and tracing is today and where students envision its further development. The book is split into two parts: Part one presents six research reports looking at the state of the art of tracking and tracing technologies from several perspectives. First, you will find an outline about the social and legal framework, followed by an overview of the current RFID market and existing applications. Then the technical aspects are described, starting from ERP applications over the EPCGlobal standard to hardware aspects.
Part two is visionary. Five student teams present tracking and tracing applications that in their opinion will reshape the future. RFID will impact the flow of goods and data in the smart supply chain and change manufacturing processes in the factory of the future. The discussion around RFID certainly leads to privacy questions but also raises the question what’s in for the consumer. The next team envisions the application of smart RFID road signs for more efficient and safe traffic. The chapter ends with a discussion how public safety can be improved by using RFID.

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