RFID in Japan

Mitsukoshi deployed this system on April 26. (It's a "real" deployment. not a pilot test.) Hankyu Department Store in Osaka deployed the system as well.

So, if you go to buy shoes at one of these department stores, sales agents may scan the shoes you are interested in using handheld devices or you may show the shoes to kiosk terminals to check availability by yourself.

via Japan.internet.com, April 27, in Japanese

According to Nikkei RFID Technology, Japanese Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) will join EPCglobal

NTT DoCoMo and Mitsui Sumitomo announced that they will collaborate to develop a new service that will allow consumers to use RFID'd "wallet phones" (aka i-Mode FeliCa phones) as credit cards.

via Internet watch, April 27, in Japanese

Today, YRP Ubiquitous Networking Labs unveiled small Active RFID Tags. They are called "Dice" and the size is about 15mm x 15mm x 15mm. Communication range: about 10m.

More info:
- They claim that "Dice" are the smallest active RFID tags in the world
- "Dice" uses the 315MHz frequency band
- If "Dice" communicate every 5 minutes, its battery will last for about 2 years and 3 months.
- "Dice" supports DES encryption
- About 1000 "Dice" tags can be read at once
- "Dice" can be integrated with sensors (for example, an integrated sensor can detect if a baggage is opened
- A pilot test using "Dice" may be done this year (they want to commercialize it soon)
- if manufactured in volume, the price of a "Dice" tag will likely be "lower end of several dollars"

via CNET News, April 27, in Japanese

Yuji Hayashi's project was to encode a message on Bento using Nori (toasted seaweed) and rice. He argues QR-encoded bentos will create a new communication channel between moms (who make bentos) and kids (who eat them) and describes a scenario in which a devorced mom says things like "I'll marry again" in a black and white pattern created using Nori and rice.

So, Mr. Hayashi and his mom struggled for three hours to create something like this. However, unfortunately, his mobile phone couldn't decode it. Lessons learned: Nori is deformed when it absorbs moisture from cooked rice. He thinks he should have used Kombu seaweed instead, which is more robust. He also suggests that someone should develop "Nori for the age of information technology. "

via @nifty daily portal < QR Code Blog

QR Code Blog explains how to make "QR Code Chocolate" using black and white chocolate bars and a sheet of inkjet/laser photo paper.

Pictures here explain the process well.

The result (after a bite) was like this:

(photo: QR Code Blog)

I could decode the message on the chocolate using my Psytec decoder. It says "I love you" in Japanese (Sukidesu). Yes, this was his Valentine's Day project.

via QR Code Blog, February 14, 2005, in QR-encoded Japanese

QR Code Blog, dubbed "World's most hard-to-read blog," is a fascinating and challenging blog that talks about all kinds of interesting stuff about QR Codes and other similar visual markers.

I said "challenging" because all postings there are encoded as QR Codes. I hope it will be human-readable in the future.

Asahi.com reported today that the goverment has selected nine companies including Secom to build a high-tech prison in Yamaguchi prefecture. It is expected to open in April 2007.

Windows in this prison will not have iron griddles; they will be made of tempered glass. Each prisoner will wear a jacket with an attached RFID tag and a display in a security guard room shows whereabouts of each prisoner.