Passive RFID-Based Phone Call System Integrated into Clothing and Furniture

This paper presents design, development, and an early prototype system of a passive ultra-high frequency (UHF) radiofrequency identification (RFID) technology-based phone call system. These tags are used as clothing- and furniture-integrated phone call triggers by utilizing two gestures; tap and double tap. Both gestures work on the principle that a specific tag is made non-detectable for the RFID reader. In preliminary testing, the prototype system was tested in an office environment in two different test setups: one with an RFID tag attached to a table and the other with an RFID tag attached to a shirtsleeve. One user successfully made a phone call 5 times in both test setups by using tap and double tap gestures. The advantage of the prototype system is that it can be integrated into clothing or furniture to make a quick call without a mobile phone. As the used technology is cost-effective and maintenance-free, there can be several RFID tags in the surroundings and in different clothes.