Design of Chipless RFID Tags Printed on Paper by Flexography

In this paper, we demonstrate for the first time that a 19-bit chipless tag based on a paper substrate can be realized using the flexography technique, which is an industrial high-speed printing process. The chipless tag is able to operate within the ultra-wide band (UWB) and has a reasonable size (7 x 3 cm(2)) compared to state-of-the-art versions. Thus, it is possible to use this design for various identification applications that require a low unit cost of tags. Both the simulation and measurement results are shown, and performance comparisons are provided between several realization processes, such as classical chemical etching, flexography printing, and catalyst inkjet printing.