Textile UHF-RFID Antenna Embroidered on Surgical Masks for Future Textile Sensing Applications

Ultrahigh frequency (UHF, 865–868 MHz) radio frequency identification (RFID) devices are expected to be implemented in many health-caring areas. In this article, we present three progressive designs of textile UHF-RFID antennas on surgical masks using a function-extensible integrated circuit (IC) chip (Rocky 100). The simulated and measured resonance curves of the designs all match well (
$|S_{11}| < -20$
dB at 868 MHz) and the maximum realized gain are improved progressively in order to overcome the difficulty of the chip low sensitivity and increase the maximum read range. The best type (Design 3) is selected and its read range measured by the RFID reader (M6E Kit) can reach 2.5 m in air. In addition, several reliability validation measurements are performed, such as bending and skin contact, and maximum read range can reach 1.1 m considering the on-body worn worst case. The proposed Design 3 allows common use as a tag for tracking or safe distance alert under an epidemic situation. Alternatively, for the used function-extensible chip, the design can be applied to many different types of sensors for various application scenarios.