Using RFID In Augmented Campus Environments Masters Thesis, Computer Science Dervis Mansuroglu October 24, 2008 Halden, Norway Abstract This thesis uses RFID in a mobile information system to augment and to be an addition to existing campus services. The thesis has focus on and explores two different but yet relative problem domains. These two focuses of the thesis are a user-oriented part discussing RFID and relevant technologies and a technical part that gives an overview of the RFID programming libraries and the implementation of a prototype that uses these libraries. The main objective of the thesis is to find out whether this prototype does augment the existing services and what students and employees of the campus think of it. Interviews and user surveys are carried out which gives an overview of what Norwegian students at Østfold University College think about a augmented campus environment. The technical part shows how to achieve automatic identification, including detailed description of the memory layout. The resulting prototype have shown several advantages, but also challenges, in integrating RFID in a campus environment. Keywords: RFID, Java JSR 257, Mobile Applications, Campus Services i Acknowledgements Among the people I would like to thank is my supervisor Gunnar Misund and the Mobile Applications Group, who helped me structure and build this thesis. He made some important decisions at the start, which helped me reach my goals. Then I would like to thank my mother, sister and brother for their endless support. Without their help I would not even be here and made through two challenging years for a Master degree. I also thank Ehsan and Cecilie for correcting the grammar and the people who tested my prototype. ii Table of Contents Abstract i Acknowledgements ii 1 Introduction 1 1.1 Research Objectives . .2 1.2 Motivation . .2 1.3 Expected Deliveries, Research Contributions . .3 1.4 Methodology . .3 1.5 Limitations . .4 1.6 Challenges . .4 1.7 Selection Of Hardware . .4 1.8 Outline Of The Report . .5 2 Background 7 2.1 Wireless Communication . .7 2.1.1 Bluetooth . .7 2.1.2 ZigBee . .8 2.1.3 Near Field Communication . .9 2.1.4 Comparing NFC, Bluetooth And ZigBee . 10 2.2 Radio Frequency Identification . 10 2.2.1 What Is Radio Frequency Identification . 11 2.2.2 RFID Tags . 11 2.2.3 Frequencies . 12 2.2.4 Security And Privacy . 13 2.3 Visual Tags . 14 2.4 Comparing Tags . 15 2.5 Mobile Technology . 16 2.5.1 Java 2 Micro Edition . 16 iii iv TABLE OF CONTENTS 2.6 Linking Tagged Objects To Virtual Resources . 17 2.7 Related Work . 18 2.7.1 RFID And Visual Tags In Campus Environments . 18 2.7.2 Use of backend servers . 20 3 Technical Overview 23 3.1 A Jungle Of API’s . 23 3.2 Communicating With Tags Using NDEF . 24 3.2.1 What Type Of Tags Is Targeted . 26 3.2.2 Where The Data Is Stored . 27 3.2.3 How The Data Is Stored . 29 3.2.4 How It Is Authenticated . 32 3.3 Using A Custom Data Format . 32 3.4 Summary . 33 4 Design 35 4.1 Assumptions . 35 4.2 Scenarios . 36 4.2.1 Library . 36 4.2.2 Booking Rooms . 36 4.2.3 Information Boards . 36 4.3 Services Paradigms . 37 4.4 Services Types . 37 4.5 Design Methods Used . 38 4.5.1 Questionnaires . 38 4.5.2 Interviews . 39 4.5.3 Design Sessions . 40 4.6 Analysis . 41 4.6.1 Interview One . 41 4.6.1.1 Summary . 43 4.6.2 Interview Two . 43 4.6.2.1 Summary . 46 4.6.3 Design Sessions . 46 4.6.3.1 Design Session One . 46 4.6.3.2 Design Session Two . 48 4.6.3.3 Summary . 48 4.6.4 Questionnaire . 48 4.7 Prototype Design . 50 TABLE OF CONTENTS v 4.7.1 Description . 51 4.7.2 Modules . 51 4.7.3 Main Functionality . 53 4.7.3.1 Adding Events . 53 4.7.3.2 Reservation Of Group Rooms . 53 4.7.3.3 Information About Books . 53 5 Implementation 55 5.1 System Overview . 55 5.2 Data Format . 56 5.3 Data Model . 57 5.4 Data Flow . 59 6 Testing 63 6.1 Method . 63 6.2 Component Testing . 64 6.3 User Testing . 66 6.3.1 Test Procedure . 66 6.3.2 Data Collection . 67 6.3.3 User Satisfaction Questionnaire . 69 7 Conclusions 73 7.1 Future Possibilities, Improvements And Use-Cases . 73 7.2 Claimed Results . 74 References 76 List of figures 80 List of tables 81 A Glossary Of Terms 82 B Class Diagram 83 C How to install Nokia 6131 NFC 1.1 Emulator into Eclipse 85 D Resellers Of Tags And Readers 93 E Questionary 95 F Interview One 99 vi TABLE OF CONTENTS G Interview Two 104 Chapter 1 Introduction Research on the field of ubiquitous computing has reached new arenas rapidly and scientists are putting great effort into finding new ways of improving our effectiveness and automating systems to make life easier for most people. To be able to do this, Schilit et al. [1] emphasizes the need for computer systems that provide ubiquitous access to information, communication and computing, but also for mobile distributed computer systems that react to the constant change in computer users environments. Most of the research done has involved in making computers understand the surrounding context and allowing them to automatically collect context information, thus eliminating the need for users to explicitly provide the.