Top Effective Uses of Near Field Communication

Near-field communication (NFC) is a short-range wireless technology that enhances the intelligence of your smartphone, tablet, wearables, payment cards, and other devices. The pinnacle of connectivity is near-field communication. With NFC, you can quickly and easily transfer information between devices with a single touch, whether you're paying bills, exchanging business cards, downloading coupons, or sharing a research paper.

 

What is Near Field Communication? 

 

NFC, or Near field communication, is a type of contactless communication between devices such as smartphones and tablets. Contactless communication allows a user to send information by waving a smartphone over an NFC-compatible device without having to touch the devices together or go through multiple steps to establish a connection. NFC technology is popular in parts of Europe and Asia, and it is rapidly spreading throughout the United States.

 

Through the NFC Forum, near-field communication maintains interoperability between various wireless communication methods such as Bluetooth, and other NFC standards such as FeliCa, which is popular in Japan. The forum, which was founded in 2004 by Sony, Nokia, and Philips, enforces strict standards that manufacturers must follow when designing NFC-compatible devices. 

 

This ensures that NFC remains secure and simple to use across different versions of the technology. The key to the growth of NFC as a popular payment and data communication method is compatibility. It must be capable of communicating with other wireless technologies as well as interacting with various types of NFC transmissions.

 

NFC technology enables a device known as a reader, interrogator, or active device to generate a radio frequency current that communicates with another NFC-compatible device or a small NFC tag containing the information the reader desires.

 

Passive devices, such as NFC tags in smart posters, store data and communicate with the reader but do not actively read other devices. NFC also allows for peer-to-peer communication between two active devices. This enables both devices to send and receive data.

 

Near-field communication technology benefits both businesses and individuals. A customer can board a train, pay for groceries, redeem coupons or store loyalty points, and even exchange contact information by combining credit cards, subway tickets, and paper coupons into one device. Faster transaction times result in less line waiting and happier customers. With fewer physical cards to carry, the customer is less likely to misplace or have one stolen.

 

How does NFC Work? 

 

NFC, like other wireless signals such as Bluetooth and WiFi, operates on the principle of transmitting data over radio waves. Another wireless data transition standard is Near Field Communication, which requires devices to meet certain specifications in order to communicate properly. NFC technology is based on an older technology known as RFID (Radio-frequency identification), which used electromagnetic induction to transmit data.

 

This creates a significant distinction between NFC and Bluetooth/WiFi. Instead of just sending data, NFC can be used to induce electric currents within passive components. This means that passive devices do not require their own power supply. Instead, they can be powered by the electromagnetic field generated by an active NFC component as it approaches. Unfortunately, NFC technology does not have enough inductance to charge our smartphones, but QI charging works on the same principle.

 

The data transmission frequency for NFC is 13.56 megahertz. Data can be sent at 106, 212, or 424 kilobits per second, which is fast enough for transferring contact information as well as pictures and music.

 

1. To determine what type of information will be exchanged between devices, the NFC standard currently has three distinct modes of operation.

 

2. The peer-to-peer mode is the most commonly used in smartphones. The exchange of various pieces of information between two devices is permitted. In this mode, both devices alternate between active and passive modes when sending and receiving data.

 

3. The read/write mode is a one-way data transmission mode. The active device, which could be your smartphone, communicates with another device in order to read data from it. This mode is used by NFC advertisement tags.

 

4. Card emulation is the third mode of operation. The NFC device can be used as a smart or contactless credit card to make payments and access public transportation systems.

 

How to Use NFC Effectively?

 

Near-field communication is purely a radio communication standard that allows devices within close proximity (up to about 10cm) to communicate with one another. This means that an NFC-enabled smartphone can communicate with another NFC-enabled smartphone or other NFC devices. The success of NFC technology is driven by two major factors: reliability and flexibility. Some of the potential uses of NFC technology and how to use them effectively are illustrated below.

---

 

How to use NFC Effectively 

---

1. Social Media Networking:

 

Social networking is already a part of everyone's daily lives and is becoming more entrenched in the industry. One of the most common applications of near-field communication is the ability to share photos, videos, and text files using NFC-enabled mobile devices. This is very similar to Bluetooth technology. However, Bluetooth appears to be a step ahead of NFC because it can stay active over longer distances, whereas NFC activity is relatively short. NFC, on the other hand, outperforms Bluetooth in terms of stability and ease of use.

 

2. E-Commerce:

 

Another popular advantage of using NFC technology is the ability to make contactless payments. You will be able to make payments in a single step by using your phone as a credit card. 

 

Companies around the world have begun to implement contactless phone payment systems, and some countries, such as Italy, have begun to use NFC in their public transportation systems. In the future, these NFC-enabled devices are expected to function as keycards or IDs, eliminating the need for us to carry any cards. It is sufficient to carry your NFC handset with you wherever you go.

 

Also Read | E-commerce: Know Everything About This Business Model

 

3. Near-field communication (NFC) tags:

 

Near Field Communication also provides businesses with promotional opportunities, which is a cost-effective benefit. This technology allows your phone to be paired with NFC tags, stickers, or markers that can be programmed by specialized apps to perform a specific task on your smartphone. The concept of NFC tags can be applied to anything, such as changing your phone's settings, launching a specific program, or creating and sending you a text message. The possibilities for this concept are nearly limitless right now, but within a few years, businesses with cleverly encrypted NFC tags will undoubtedly notice a difference, while those who haven't begun using them will be left behind.

 

4. Paying with your phone:

 

Contactless payments are an excellent example of how to use NFC technology in your daily life. Although contactless payments have been slow to gain traction in the United States (fewer than 20% of Americans used mobile payments in 2015), they are already extremely popular in the United Kingdom, Australia, and Canada. 

 

NFC payments are extremely secure, even more so than EMV or chip card payments, contrary to popular belief. Because global PCI compliance standards require all electronic devices to tokenize credit card data, your credit card information is never directly stored on your phone. NFC payments are used by Apple Pay, Samsung Pay, and Android Pay.

 

5. Hanging out with friends:

 

Finally, if you need a break, you can share games, links, and information with friends by bumping phones. NFC can connect your phones via Bluetooth to send large amounts of data from a greater distance than NFC can cover. You can even send money to each other by waving your smartphone.

 

6. During a concert:

 

You can buy concert tickets and gain access to a concert using your NFC-compatible smartphone, just like you would a bus ticket. At the concert, you can also interact with smart posters to learn more about the band, the current schedule of events, and upcoming performances. When you're thirsty, simply wave your phone at a merchant's register to purchase a beverage. With fewer tickets and cards to juggle, the event is less stressful and your chances of being pickpocketed are reduced.

 

Only the imaginations of those developing this technology limit the possibilities. NFC tags can replace barcodes and allow smartphone users to interact with objects to find out information such as a bus schedule or learn more about a product they want to buy. NFC technology is intended to make learning, shopping, and data sharing more convenient.

 

Conclusion:

 

NFC is a non-contact radio frequency identification (RFID) technology that has been combined with wireless interconnection technology. It offers a very safe and quick communication method for a variety of electronic products that are becoming increasingly popular in our daily lives.

 

The term "near field" in the NFC refers to radio waves that are close to the electromagnetic field. Because radio waves are electromagnetic waves, they adhere to Maxwell's equations. 

 

Electric and magnetic fields will always alternate energy conversion while propagating from the transmitting antenna to the receiving antenna, and they will enhance each other during the conversion, just like the radio in our phones. This principle is used to propagate the signal, and the method is known as far-field communication.

 

Near-field communication allows two devices to communicate by transmitting data through electromagnetic radio fields. Because transactions take place over such a short distance, both devices must have NFC chips. For data transfer to occur, NFC-enabled devices must be physically touching or within a few centimeters of each other.

 

Near-field communications (NFCs) greatly reduce the possibility of human error because the receiving device reads your data as soon as you send it. You can rest assured, for example, that you will not unknowingly purchase something because of a pocket dial or by walking past a location embedded with an NFC chip (called a "smart poster"). When using near-field communication, you must perform an action on purpose.

 

In fact, even after NFC technology becomes ubiquitous, users may still require a backup payment method; you can't do much with a device whose battery is depleted. However, whether this is a permanent disadvantage of NFC technology remains to be seen.

 

As you can see, NFC-based services are becoming increasingly popular not only in the smartphone industry, but also in social networks, payments, and other future technological possibilities. The technology is entirely focused on improving the user experience in terms of shopping, learning, and data sharing. With more and more capable NFC tags and apps being launched on a consistent basis by mobile application development companies, the industry will undoubtedly remain stable for decades and decades.