ABI Research: Impact of Printed Electronics in RFID May Be Delayed

June 5, 2006

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Printed electronics have the potential to transform the radio frequency identification (RFID) industry, if and when they gain sufficient market acceptance and find appropriate applications. But, contrary to some expectations, analysts said their impact will not be significant for some years to come. That's according to a recent ABI Research study which examined the technologies, applications and timeframes for introduction of printed electronics in the RFID tag industry.

"Printed electronics - antennas, transistors and batteries - could eventually change the dynamics of the RFID industry," said industry analyst Sara Shah. "Applied directly to materials such as corrugated cardboard, they would allow manufacturers and distributors to create their own 'smart packaging' and bypass the whole long RFID tag production chain."

Printed antennas that operate in the high frequency (HF) and ultra-high frequency (UHF) bands are available now, and eventually a large proportion of UHF RFID antennas could be produced by printing. But analysts said their ideal market, UHF supply-chain management, is itself growing more slowly than originally expected. Printed transistors, on the other hand, which only operate with low performance in the low frequency (LF) band and conform to no standard, aren't yet available.

"When printed transistors arrive in 2008 they won't be able to compete with silicon transistors," said Shah. "With their low frequency operation and incompatibility with existing readers, they will not be suitable for open loop supply chains until standards emerge for item-level LF tagging. They should, however, carve out their own market for tagging very low-cost, non-critical objects in the meantime."

Printed transistors might find a role in closed-loop asset management solutions. That sector, according to ABI Research, could produce viable levels of demand, especially since end-users have seen success in this application with conventional tags. Cheaper tags have the potential to speed a return on investment.

Printed batteries will eventually become part of the RFID market as well, enabling the addition of temperature, humidity and light sensors to RFID tags. But analysts said this market will not develop until later in the study's forecast period, which extends to 2015.

Source: ABI Research.